No Strings Attached
by KJ7311
Summary: During Sirius, Lily and James' final year at Hogwarts, Sirius falls for a Muggle exchange student.
1. The Exchange Student

**Disclaimer: Characters are J.K. Rowling's creation except Beth. She's mine.**

**I switched how I broke up the chapters. Sorry to those of you who already started reading this! **

Lily grabbed James' hand as he came out of Great Hall. He grinned at her, surprised, as she pulled him out of the traffic of students next to the wall by the door and kissed him in greeting. "You'll never guess what I just found out," she told him, her voice rife with suppressed excitement.

"The house elves went on strike," James guessed. "Which does not bode well for us because—let's face it—we'll cave in about two days without someone cooking our food."

Lily laughed and shook her head. "No, we are going to have an exchange student! And she'll be staying with me in the seventh year Gryffindor dorm."

"Exchange student?" James frowned as he idly brushed a strand of Lily's hair off of her face. "Hogwarts doesn't _exchange _students. Where's she from?"

"She's from the States. It's even weirder than that. She's a Muggle!" She grinned as James' mouth dropped open in shock.

"Why would Dumbledore allow that?" He shook his head. "We never let Muggles in here. What's the point?"

Lily shrugged. "I don't know but he asked you and I to meet him after lunch. That's why I came to get you." She tugged his hand and they started walking towards Dumbledore's office.

"I'm hurt you only came for me because I'm Head Boy," James told her. "I was all excited you were desperate to spend every minute possible with me since we just got back from the holiday break."

"That too," Lily smiled fondly at him. "You're a perk of my head girl position."

James laughed. "So I'm a perk, huh?"

"The best," Lily laughingly kissed him.

Dumbledore greeted them with his usual enigmatic smile when Lily and James entered his office. They sat in the two chairs facing his desk and waited while Dumbledore finished writing in a huge ledger in front of him.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice." Dumbledore set aside his quill and Lily and James nodded. "We have an exchange student that will be arriving tomorrow." He looked at Lily. "Miss Evans, I believe you've already heard that this student is a muggle." Lily nodded again, her eyes wide. "She will be our first muggle exchange student."

James and Lily shared a glance but did not speak. Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers together and considered his words carefully. "Her uncle, John Peterson, is a muggleborn wizard. He is the head of the States' Department of Magic so she knows about witches and wizards."

Dumbledore paused and waited as if expecting a question. When Lily and James remained silent, he continued.

"I know it is confusing why I'm allowing a muggle as a student of Hogwarts even for a short time. She is very interested in coming here to learn more about the wizard world. It's a gesture of goodwill for us to accept her."

"As you know, Voldemort is gathering his forces and I believe the wizard war will get significantly worse in the near future." He paused a moment to let that information sink in. Lily swallowed, her eyes meeting James' for reassurance. James covered her hand and squeezed.

"Hogwarts is one of the safest places for witches and wizards to be so Miss Peterson will be safe with us," Dumbledore picked up a quill and inspected it idly. "I am hoping I will be able to request assistance from the U.S. Department of Magic at a later time if it is necessary. I am also counting on you and your fellow students to help Miss Peterson learn more us. John Peterson is very close to his niece and trusts her judgment. She may provide him with a more personal realization of the danger of Voldemort controlling the wizard world in the U.K.. It's a very slim chance that her influence will make any difference, but there's very little effort or risk to us in hosting her."

"There are a few classes she can take here and she will work as a guest lecturer in several Muggle Studies classes." Dumbledore said. "She's interested in becoming a teacher someday and will get practical experience here."

"What classes can she take?" James interjected. He moved restlessly on his chair and regarded Dumbledore warily. Lily wasn't surprised. She knew James was thinking Dumbledore had gone over the edge with this one.

"Arithmancy-she's very advanced in mathematics. History of Magic requires no magic skills. She can also take Divination, which might prove interesting to her." James had to hold back a snicker. Dumbledore had pretty much just admitted Divination had very little magic involved.

Lily was still not sure she understood why a muggle was going to be at Hogwarts with them, nor how said muggle could make any difference in the wizard war Voldemort was concocting but having someone so different stay with them would at least most likely be interesting.

"Won't she feel isolated?" Lily asked quizzically. "Surrounded by witches and wizards who can do magic when she can't?"

Dumbledore nodded, his eyes gleaming. "Most assuredly so. I trust you and our other students will be welcoming to her."

"Do we need to tell her about Voldemort?" James asked.

"She already knows a great deal," Dumbledore said. "You don't need to make an issue of it. Let it come out naturally. I'm pretty sure she'll hear plenty from many students and will form her own opinion."

"Will she be in danger from any of the students here? Some of them might be leaning towards becoming Death-Eaters and might not appreciate a muggle around." Lily phrased it as diplomatically as she could, but she was worried.

Dumbledore's gave her a nod of approval. "You're right, some of them will not be pleased. I will be talking to each house and letting all of the students here know that Miss Peterson is under my personal protection. It would actually be against Voldemort's best interests to harm her while she is a guest here. Her uncle would most certainly become involved, and Voldemort would prefer that the Department of Magic stay out of this war."

There was a short silence when he finished. Dumbledore waited patiently in case they had any other questions but neither Lily nor James spoke. After moving on to a few minutes of discussion about other Head Boy and Girl issues, James and Lily said their good-byes and left Dumbledore's office.

"I don't know if this is a great idea," James said slowly. He laced his fingers through Lily's as they ambled down the empty hallway toward Gryffindor Tower.

"I feel like there's something he's not telling us," Lily frowned. "Not that it matters. He certainly doesn't have to explain anything to us."

"You may be right," James said. "Dumbledore is pretty careful about sharing information."

"Still, I'm excited." Lily grinned at him. "It'll be fun having someone different in my dorm. We've been with the same people for six years."

"The sixth and seventh year blokes will look forward to a new girl too," James put his arm around Lily's shoulders as she turned and lifted her eyebrows at him. "That is, the ones who don't already have the perfect girlfriend." He grinned at her as Lily muttered "Nice save."


	2. Hogwarts tour

Hagrid pushed open the huge doors into the castle, chatting to the petite, brunette curly-haired girl easily even as he carried her huge trunk on his shoulder. "Come in," he motioned her forward as she hesitated at the door. "Yeh'll like Hogwarts."

A red-haired girl who had clearly been waiting near the door rushed over to them, her eyes fixed on the girl with Hagrid. "Hi," she smiled widely. "I'm Lily Evans. I'm going to be one of your roommates."

"I'm Beth Peterson," Beth held out her hand to Lily. Lily's stunning green eyes were friendly and Beth felt immediately reassured.

Hagrid headed to the stairs. "I'll take your trunk to the Gryffindor Common Room," he called to Beth over his shoulder. "Lily will take care of showing you around."

"Do you need help with your bag?" Lily indicated the large duffel bag Beth was carrying.

"No thanks, its fine." Beth looked around the hall with wide eyes. It was huge and old, like those ancient castles that people from America came to Europe to gawk over.

"I'll take you on a tour of the castle later. Let's go up to Gryffindor Tower first so you can see our dorm room and the Common Room where we study and socialize." Lily turned towards the stairs Hagrid had disappeared up. The staircase was marble and Beth trailed her hand on the smooth banister as they walked up. "Professor McGonagall will talk with you later about our school rules and such. It's nice you came on a Saturday; you'll have a couple of days to get adjusted before classes begin on Monday."

Beth half-listened to Lily as she followed her up the stairs. There was so much to see and it was hard to take it all in. When they got to Gryffindor Tower, Lily stopped in front of a portrait. Beth wasn't surprised to see that people moved in the portraits, she'd visited her uncle's office (and had once spent hours asking questions to the portraits until they'd begged him to send her home). What she hadn't expected was to have a portrait be the gatekeeper to their dorm rooms and she stepped back, stunned when Lily said random sounding words to the lady in the picture.

The picture swung open to reveal an opening to a strangely round room and Beth realized she should have listened to whatever it was Lily had said to get them in. Lily was still talking and Beth didn't want to interrupt so she stepped into the room after Lily.

They were in a large room with plenty of tables, chairs, couches and a huge fireplace in the middle. Lily walked to the area in front of the fireplace and then paused when she spotted someone.

"Sirius!" Lily called across the room to a good-looking, dark-haired wizard. "Get over here."

Sirius came to stand next to Lily, eyeing Beth with frank curiosity. He had an athletic build, Beth noticed, gorgeous eyes and a chiseled face.

"Sirius Black, this is Beth Peterson." Beth gave him a friendly smile and held out her hand. Sirius shook it politely but did not smile back.

"Beth," he said contemplatively. "Like the song by Kiss."

"Yes," Beth's smile grew wider.

"Such a pansy-arsed song for a rock band," his voice was querulous. He was still staring at her but his impassive face gave her no clue to his feelings.

Beth's smile faded and she glanced at Lily looking slightly embarrassed. "Don't mind Sirius," Lily stage-whispered to Beth. "He can be a moody ponce at times. But we still love him." She put her arm around Sirius and gave him a friendly hug. Sirius rolled his eyes, but Beth noticed the corner of his mouth turned up a little as he gave Lily a quick squeeze in return.

A tall wizard with dark, messy hair and glasses appeared next to Lily. He slung his arm around Lily's shoulders and smiled at Beth with a friendliness that contrasted sharply with Sirius' manner. Lily turned to greet him with a quick kiss on the lips and then introduced him to Beth. "And this is my boyfriend James Potter," Lily beamed proudly.

"Nice to meet you, Beth," James said with a firm shake of her hand.

"Beth is going to be in your Arithmancy class," Lily elbowed Sirius. "And she'll be teaching one day a week in your Muggle Studies."

"Brilliant!" James beamed. "Tedison puts us to sleep in Muggle Studies. We can use some excitement in that class."

"I don't know how much excitement I'll bring," Beth looked a little nervous. She spoke quickly. "I've never taught a class before and it'll be weird teaching students who are the same age as me. I hope they'll listen and give me a chance."

James waved Beth's concerns away. "You're different from Tedison," he said. "That's a good start."

"And you're energetic and upbeat with an interesting accent," another wizard had moved next to Sirius. "That'll get our attention better than Tedison's monotone voice." He was tall, pale and had a friendly expression. "I'm Remus Lupin," he continued, taking Beth's hand and shaking it heartily.

Sirius glared at him. "Way to suck up to the new teacher, Lupin."

Remus just grinned at Sirius. "It might help your marks to actually get on the good side of a teacher once in a while, Black, instead of just trying to piss them off."

Sirius snorted. "And ruin my reputation?"

"What else will you be taking, Beth?" Remus asked.

"Divination and History of Magic," Beth said. "I'll also be teaching Muggle Studies once a week to the first-years, third-years and sixth-years. There are a lot of classes I can't really take as I don't have any magical powers."

"What are your favorite subjects?" Lily asked.

"Math and Physics," Beth said. "I like understanding how things work."

"Good luck with that in magic." Sirius regarded her critically. "Why did you come here?" he asked bluntly.

"It's an amazing opportunity to learn about an entirely different world," Beth replied. Sirius was a little taken aback she wasn't fazed by his brusque question. "I mean, I know I'll never be a part of the wizard world. But it's cool to experience it even as an observer."

"And you're okay with that? Being here and never fitting in?" Sirius asked. This time he honestly didn't mean to be rude. He just wanted to understand her motives.

"Yeah," Beth nodded. "I'm pretty sure I can at least be friends with witches and wizards, right?"

"Of course," Lily glared at Sirius with a 'Be polite' warning on her face. Sirius gave her a deadpan stare in return.

Beth caught the exchange and smiled, putting her hand on Sirius' arm. "Will you be my friend, Sirius?" she asked in a syrupy tone, batting her eyelashes.

Sirius laughed, surprised. The girl had spunk. "If you play your cards right." He winked at her and Beth's breath caught in her throat. Sirius' face lit up when he smiled and he looked like an entirely different person.

"I'm going to take Beth on a tour of the castle," Lily said brightly. "Does anyone else want to come with us?"

"I do," James answered quickly. "What about you, Padfoot?"

Sirius shrugged. "Sure."

"Sorry, I can't this time." Remus told Beth regretfully. "I forgot some supplies I need and I'm heading into Hogsmeade."

"That's the nearest village to Hogwarts," Lily explained to Beth. "I'll take you there sometime." She turned back to James and Sirius. "Let me just take Beth up to our room to drop off her bag. We'll be down in just a few minutes."

Lily showed Beth her bed and Beth dropped her bag on it. Beth barely had a chance to notice the other four beds, the curtains that could be drawn around her bed for privacy, and the view out of the window before Lily dragged her back downstairs.

The tour was fast-paced and lively. Beth's head was soon spinning at the size of the castle, the moving staircases, the many secret passages (which James and Sirius were all too happy to share) and the plethora of ghosts, stories and other (often random) information she was lectured on. "I'll never remember how to get around this place," she laughed. "Do you guys have a map?"

James, Sirius and Lily exchanged a guarded glance. "Everyone eventually just figures it out," James said.

Beth raised her eyebrows. "Ah, you only have a _secret_ map. Never fear, I won't ask you about it. It's probably magic and would be useless to a muggle anyway."

"Thanks for taking me on the tour," Beth told Sirius a couple of hours later as they walked down one of the many drafty halls near the Dungeons. James and Lily had lagged behind them and Sirius guessed there was some snogging going on.

"I didn't have anything else to do," Sirius waved off her gratitude.

Beth put her hand on her chest. "Be still, my heart." She sighed dramatically. "You really know how to make a girl feel special, Sirius."

Sirius snorted. Beth's animation and enthusiasm had made the tour fun. He'd already discovered he liked trying to get a rise out of her and then watching as the emotions crossed her expressive face.

One of the torches next to them flickered and went out as a current of cold air swept down the hall. Beth jumped a little and looked over her shoulder. The torches down the hall made long dark shadows that wavered against the walls. "Make sure you don't walk around the castle alone at night for a few weeks, Peterson." Sirius told her quietly gesturing towards the now dark torch.

"Why?" Beth sounded worried. This section of the castle made her nervous. It looked entirely too much like medieval torture had been meted out in some of these chambers.

"Rumor has it the ghost of Ruby Jones always watches for new students." Sirius' voice was guarded and low. His fingers lightly grazed the small of her back and she shivered.

"What for?" Beth asked. She shifted closer to Sirius. Her eyes were wide, pupils dilated in the dim light.

"She was killed down here her first week of school at Hogwarts, her body slowly dismembered while she was still alive." Sirius spoke slowly. Beth gulped. She had a low tolerance for gore. Or blood. Or suspense for that matter. She was always the one huddled in her seat covering her eyes when her friends persuaded her to go to movies that were scary.

"They never found her murderer." Sirius' voice continued somberly. "Now she roams the halls looking for someone to join her. New students hear her calling and see a dark shadow following them." Sirius watched as Beth's eyes widened further.

"Has anything ever happened to anyone else?" Beth squeaked. She was ready to toss aside the last bit of her self-respect and ask him to get her out of here as fast as their legs could carry them.

"Yes," Sirius grinned. "They figured out when their leg was being pulled." He laughed as relief and then annoyance washed over her face.

"Jerk!" Beth smacked him in the chest. "Thanks for scaring me to death, you asshole."

"You probably shouldn't play poker, Peterson. You can't hide anything, can you?" Sirius kept laughing.

Beth took a deep breath as her heart slowed down to normal and shook her head. "Nope. I'm pathetic, which is pretty sad because I'm pretty good with probabilities. Are you good at poker?"

"You're looking at a master," Sirius stated with no hint of boasting. "My impassive poker face is legendary."

"I'll bet," Beth muttered jealously. She had so much fun playing poker but could never carry off a bluff. Her open face was a serious handicap.

"Hey James," Sirius called out as he spotted James and Lily come around the corner towards them. "Beth wants to play poker with us tonight." Sirius had a wicked glint in his eyes.

"Really?" Lily looked at Beth with a disappointed frown. "I have been trying to persuade these blokes to play Charades with us tonight." Beth saw Sirius stiffen out of the corner of her eye.

"Hmm," Beth pretended to consider the options. "I'd love to play Charades, but Sirius really wants to play poker. He was just telling me how good a player he is. I don't really want to play myself, I just figured I'd sit next to him and watch so I could learn." She smiled sweetly at Sirius. "I'll try not to talk so no one will guess what cards you have, Sirius. Sometimes I have a hard time not exclaiming when I see a really good hand."

Sirius stared at her for a long moment. He swore and threw up his hands. "Fuck poker. We can play sodding Charades."

"Great," Lily clapped. Over her head, James glared at Sirius. He mouthed, "What the fuck?" Sirius shrugged and gave Beth a narrow-eyed scowl. She smiled at him blithely.

As Beth turned to follow Lily and James who had started down the hall, she felt a large hand clamp down on her shoulder. "I'll get you later for that one, Peterson." Sirius' mouth was close to her ear but she steeled herself to keep herself from showing him her reaction.

"A good player knows when to fold, Black," she replied shooting a knowing look at him over her shoulder. "I knew you'd make the right choice."


	3. Homesick

Lily flopped on Beth's bed and picked up the 35mm camera lying there. "I haven't used a muggle camera in a long time," she told Beth framing Beth through the lens and snapping the shutter. "My dad always takes photos in the summer, but I have a wizard camera that I use here."

"How does a wizard camera work?" Beth asked curiously.

"I'm not sure," Lily chewed her lip. "The people in the pictures move though. Just for a few seconds, like a short moving picture." She handed the camera back to Beth.

Beth framed Lily and adjusted the aperture to make the depth of field shallow. "I'm shooting with black and white film." She took a few photos where only Lily's eyes were in sharp focus, the rest of her face soft and her hair blurry. It was early afternoon and the winter sun was bright outside giving her perfect lighting. "I love how classic it looks."

"So how do you like it here so far?" Lily rolled on to her back and stretched her arms over her head.

"Good first day yesterday," Beth nodded. She set the camera on her bedside table and stretched out next to Lily. "Were you surprised Dumbledore let me come here?"

"Very," Lily was also surprised Beth brought this up so soon. "He told me and James it was to create goodwill with the Department of Magic in the States."

"Mostly," Beth nodded. "There's a little more to it. My uncle and Dumbledore go way back. Dumbledore owes Uncle John a favor. Uncle John called it in so I could come here."

Lily turned on to her side, propping her head up with her elbow. "Why did you want to come here so much?"

Beth shrugged. "Let's just say I really needed to get away from my school for personal reasons. Plus I've always been fascinated with the wizard world—really, I've always wished I was born with magical powers like you." She smiled at Lily wistfully. "Being able to come here for a few months is really special for me."

"Aren't you homesick?" Lily asked.

"No," Beth smiled. "I miss my family, of course, but it feels nice to be somewhere different." Lily shot her a puzzled look that Beth didn't see. She had heard Beth's muffled sobs as she cried herself to sleep last night.

"Let's look at your schedule and make sure you have someone to take you to each class tomorrow," Lily suggested, deciding it might be best to change the subject.

"I have Arithmancy first," Beth pulled out the official looking parchment she'd received from Professor McGonagall when she met with her before lunch.

"Perfect," Lily said. "James and Sirius are in that class. We'll meet up with them at breakfast."

Beth rolled more comfortably on her back. "Tell me about your friends and Hogwarts." For the next hour, Lily told Beth about the Marauders (Beth snickered, "I seriously hope they came up with that lame name when they were eleven and first started here-not last year"), how wizard mail worked ("Owls? You've got to be kidding?"), what courses they took ("I have no idea what most of you just said even _means_"), sports ("You only have one school sport? And it's played on a broom? This I've got to see"), and the house elves ("Are they _paid_ to do all the dirty work?").

Lily asked about Beth's school and listened as Beth told her that she played water polo, was on the swim team and managed the boy's water polo team ("If you've ever seen water polo player's bodies, you'd know why I'm willing to put in the extra time"), her older brother ("He's away at college so we only see each other when he's on break but he's awesome"), her uncle ("We're really close but he lives clear across the country from us so we don't see him as much as we'd like") and her desire to be a teacher. Surprisingly, Beth became evasive when Lily asked about Beth's close friends. Lily was puzzled when Beth's face closed off and after a few questions she gave up. They'd just met and Lily shouldn't expect Beth to confide in her. Still, it was, well weird.


	4. Muggle technology

Remus and Sirius sat in the Common Room, relaxing in the drowsy winter afternoon. Sirius stretched his legs in front of him towards the warmth of the fire. "Last afternoon before the new term begins. It's nice not to have homework to ignore."

Remus snickered. "You're lucky you're reasonably intelligent, Padfoot. I don't know how you manage to get by on as little effort as you put in."

"It's a gift," Sirius closed his eyes lazily.

"What do you think of Beth?" Remus put his hands behind his head, stretching his shoulders.

"What's to think?" Sirius didn't open his eyes. "She's a skirt, doesn't hurt to look at her."

Remus snorted. "That's an understatement. She's gorgeous and you know it, Black. But I was asking what you thought of her as a person. She seems nice. Genuine."

"She shows her feelings too much," Sirius commented. "Some of the pricks around her will chew her up and spit her out."

"You're one of the biggest pricks around here, Padfoot." Remus reminded him. "Is that what you'll do to her?"

Sirius grinned and opened his eyes. "She should be so lucky."

Remus shook his head at him. "Be careful, Sirius. Lily is watching out for her and you know how protective she gets." He spotted Beth coming down the girls' staircase and elbowed Sirius to shut up as Sirius muttered under his breath that Lily didn't scare him.

Beth spotted them, quickly came over and set down her cassette tape player on the coffee table. She sat down next to Sirius. "What's that?" Remus asked.

"My cassette tape player," she told Remus and Sirius. "I brought this so I could play music in Muggle Studies."

"How does that thing work?" Remus leaned forward and stared at the buttons.

"The music is recorded on a tape. You punch this button to make it play," she pushed a button and a song started. "This is the song Sirius hates." She gave Sirius a mocking grin. "I'm pretty sure he'll always think of me from now on when he hears it."

Sirius grimaced as Remus listened, head cocked, to the song 'Beth'. "It's really brill," Remus said when it finished. "Haunting melody, classic issue of a guy torn between his girl and his friends." He looked at Sirius quizzically. "Why do you hate it?"

"I don't hate it," Sirius clarified. "I just think it's a fucking wussy song for a rock band."

"What—guys in a rock band can't fall in love?" Beth stared at him. "That's beneath them or something?"

"No," Sirius frowned at her. "They just can't whine about missing their girlfriend when they're with their mates. Sodding idiot."

Beth snorted. "You've never been in love, have you?"

"Hell no," Sirius admitted. "But when I am you won't find me acting like a sap."

Remus was inspecting the cassette player. "Why is there a cord that is attached to this box?" he asked picking up the box which was heavy for its size.

"That's special for me," Beth pulled the box from his hand and yanked out a plug. "Normally, you plug this into the wall so it will get electricity to run the player. Since the wizarding world doesn't have electricity, my uncle made special batteries for me. These batteries have way more capacity than normal ones and my equipment can plug into them for power."

"What other equipment do you have?" Sirius asked.

"A camera, a video camera, a video player and a T.V.," Beth said.

"What the fuck for?" Sirius sounded put out. Beth had already figured out that was a fairly normal tone for him.

"To use for my Muggle Studies lectures," Beth said. "They'll be good demos."

"You're into technology, then?" Remus inquired. "How does the cassette player get music from that little tape?"

"Yeah, I love technology." Beth popped open the tape player and pulled out the cassette. She put it on her hand to show Remus and Sirius. "When a tape is recorded, an electromagnet applies a magnetic flux to the oxide on the tape. See the tape hanging out at the bottom? That's where the tape runs through the player so it can convert the magnetic recording to a signal which is then amplified through the speakers so we can hear it."

"What?" Remus asked bemused. His expression was so confused, she laughed.

"You guys don't depend on technology the way muggles do. You have magic instead. We have to keep inventing things and we still can't do what you can."

Sirius shook his head. "You're not going to make our Muggle Studies class learn how a tape player works, are you?"

Beth practically choked with mirth at his aghast tone. "Of course not. I might mention it if someone asks. Most muggles don't know how it works either. They just know how to push the buttons to make it play."

"That's a relief," Sirius muttered. He'd never admit how much he found Beth's enthusiasm appealing but he didn't need to add more work to his classes.

Peter sauntered up and flopped down in an armchair next to Remus. "Did you meet Peter yesterday, Beth?" Remus asked politely.

"Yes, at dinner," Beth nodded a greeting to Peter. Peter looked at her with undisguised interest and Sirius frowned at him. Wanker practically had his tongue hanging out of his mouth.

"Are you taking Muggle Studies, Peter?" Beth asked.

"No," Peter shook his head. "My schedule's too full."

"Beth was just showing us her music cassette player," Remus told Peter. "She's going to use it when she teaches Muggle Studies."

Peter leaned forward. "Can you play something?"

Beth smirked. "What will you give me, Sirius, to not play that song again?"

"You owe me one for coercing me to play bloody Charades last night," Sirius gave her a cold stare. James had given him plenty of shit for caving on that.

"I'm just helping you expand your horizons," Beth elbowed him. "It made Lily happy anyway."

"Where are James and Lily?" Sirius asked.

"Probably snogging in a dark corner," Peter said flippantly.

Beth looked confused. "Doing what in a dark corner?"

Sirius gave her an amused stare. "It's when you kiss passionately. Don't tell me you Yanks don't do that."

"Oh," Beth's cheeks turned pink. "We call it making out." Sirius raised his eyebrows, mentally filing that information away.

Remus cleared his throat. "James and Lily are getting ready for the Prefect meeting tonight."

Beth rewound the tape to the beginning and turned it on for Peter. "Let's see if this meets Sirius' approval," she said as 'Magic Man' by Heart played.

Sirius grinned as he listened. "I haven't heard this before. It's funny they don't mean real magic."

"What kind of magic do they mean?" Peter asked, confused.

Sirius made a sound of disgust. Remus looked at Beth who blushed again but finally answered. "The singer means he seduced her."

"Oh," Peter still looked perplexed. "How is that magic?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows and grinned wolfishly at Beth. "Maybe you should also teach a sex ed class."

Beth smacked his arm and spoke quietly so only he could hear. "I'm pretty sure I'm not qualified."

"Really?" Sirius' stare showed he knew what she meant. He leaned over and whispered in her ear. "Don't they say those that can't do it, teach?"

"Moron." Beth was unable to keep her lips from quirking as she turned to stare at him. He was so close she could feel his warm breath on her cheek. "I'll teach _you_ a lesson someday."

Sirius positively leered at her. "Promise?"

"If you play your cards right." Beth's face was flaming, but she couldn't resist throwing his words back at him. Sirius reared back his head and roared with laughter.

"Unfortunately, my friends are sitting right here, so I can't take you up on that right now." Sirius shook his head, his eyes bright with mirth. "Oh Beth, what can I do?" He sang with a raspy voice.

"You can quit being such an asshole," Beth said but she couldn't help laughing. Her eyes slid to Remus who was quietly talking to Peter, tactfully ignoring their flirting. She appreciated his sensitivity, quite a contrast to Sirius. For the next several minutes, Beth chatted with Remus and Peter, ignoring Sirius lying between them who had closed his eyes again.

Beth's eyes started to droop. "Jetlagged?" Remus asked sympathetically when he saw her stifle a yawn.

Beth nodded. "It's an eight-hour time difference," she said sleepily. "Which means it's around midnight at home now."

"Where are you from?" Peter asked, surprised that it could be that many hours different. Geography wasn't his strong suit.

"Oregon which is on the West Coast." Beth let her head slump back against the couch, kicked off her shoes and curled her legs up underneath her body. "Don't mind me, I'm just going to shut my eyes for a minute." Her eyes closed.

When she woke up, she opened her eyes to see Sirius still lying next to her, lazily turning the pages of a magazine. Peter and Remus had left and the sun had gone down outside. Beth sat up slowly, drawing Sirius' attention. "Did I sleep long?" she mumbled.

"About an hour," Sirius said. He watched Beth as she slowly unfolded, stretching her arms wide and as far behind her as they could go. Her curly hair looked tousled, her face was relaxed from sleep and her t-shirt was bunched on one side, leaving the other side taut. His mouth went dry and he swallowed hard.

"Where's Remus and Peter?" Beth asked after she had finished stretching. When she looked at Sirius, she was surprised to find his eyes fixed on her with a blank expression. He shook his head a little and his characteristic scowl came back on his face. "Remus is at the Prefects' Meeting. Peter was hungry, he went to dinner early."

"Oh," Beth didn't want to tell Sirius but she was starving. Not normal early dinner hungry, but famished, as if she hadn't eaten in days instead of at lunch a few hours earlier. My circadian rhythm must be all messed up, she thought ruefully.

Sirius stood up and extended his hand to her. "Come on, Peterson. Let me buy you dinner." He grinned when her eyes rose to meet his, surprised.

"How did you know I was hungry?" Beth put her hand in his and let him pull her up. She slipped on her shoes and they started towards the Portrait Hole.

"That poker face of yours. You practically started salivating when I mentioned Peter had gone to dinner." Sirius pushed the Portrait Hole open and they stepped into the hall.

"I'm not sure I like how well you can read me," Beth pouted.

"Don't worry. You're female. That means I'm bound to screw up and misunderstand you most of the time." Sirius chuckled at her.

"Well, that makes me feel much better," Beth said drily. "Let's just keep perpetuating stereotypes."

Sirius grinned and put his arm around her. "I can do that."


	5. Muggle Studies

Sirius tilted his head towards Beth, who was talking to Lily as they ate breakfast. "We might need to crack some heads in Muggle Studies later today," he told James in an undertone. "Some of those arseholes may try to rib her or something to see if they can fluster her. Tedison will probably fall asleep in the corner."

James grinned. "I've never seen you stick up for a teacher, Padfoot. You've turned over a new leaf." He gave Sirius a questioning look. "Or maybe you like the teacher?"

Sirius scowled looking embarrassed. "She's just too young to control a class. I don't want her to quit in frustration. We'd lose the chance to have one class a week with Tedison."

James gave him a knowing nod. "Anything you say, mate. I'll help you keep the arseholes in line."

When Sirius got to his seat in Muggle Studies later that day, Beth stood at the front of the class, waiting patiently until everyone had sat down. "I'm going to be teaching this class one day a week," she smiled at the rows of students. Some of them looked a little confused. Why was this _girl_ teaching their class? From behind him, Sirius heard Sam Tretton comment quietly "Yeah, baby." He turned around and kicked Sam's leg under the table. "Fuck off, Sirius!" Sam glared, but he shut up when Beth looked in their direction.

The rest of the class looked towards Professor Tedison for answers. He was sitting quietly behind his desk and he absently gave them a genial wave and then went back to working on his grade book.

"I know I'm as young as you," Beth continued. "Think of me as a guest lecturer. Of course, it helps that this is Muggle Studies and I'm a muggle."

"It helps that she's a _hot _muggle," Ralph Welch told his seatmate Gary in front of them. Ralph was on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and James reached over the desk to shove Ralph's back and then gave him a terse shake of his head and a cold stare. Ralph closed his mouth and turned forward to listen to Beth.

"I'm going to concentrate on muggle arts in music, film and literature during my classes with you. We'll also _briefly_ (she looked towards Sirius as she enunciated that word and he gave her a mocking salute) discuss the technology muggles use to produce their art. The arts we study will give us insight into current muggle issues which will help you understand their society and culture." She pulled out a piece of parchment. "Until I learn your names, I'll be using this seating chart when I call on you."

Beth took out her cassette player. Sirius inwardly blanched. She wasn't going to play that sodding 'Beth' song was she? Beth smiled at the class. "We're going to talk about music today. Our first piece is called 'Welcome to the Machine' by Pink Floyd."

Sirius relaxed with a sigh of relief. He was pretty sure most of the class would love this song. "I want you to first listen to the lyrics carefully," Beth continued. "It's a very cynical look at the music industry. Pink Floyd felt the industry made artistic expression take a back seat to making money."

Sirius looked around at his fellow classmates. They were now not only quiet, they were actually listening to Beth. Beth pushed play and the music blared out. When the song finished, Beth stood up and walked up and down the aisle between the desks. "The plot of this song starts with a musician being hired. Who can tell me what 'The Machine' is?" Several excited voices started out, and Beth put up a hand. "One at a time, please. Jennifer, why don't you start?"

The discussion that followed was rapid-fire and interesting. Beth had to stop the class when the period was half over so she could play her next song. This one dealt with physical abuse starting a fierce debate that took up the rest of the class time. Sirius noticed Beth would expertly explain the commonalities between muggles and wizards as well as highlight the differences.

Before the class ended, Beth held up a stack of paperback books and started passing them out. "We're going to read a book over the next few weeks. It's called 'Carrie' by Stephen King and be forewarned, there is violence. There's also a type of magic, but it's not quite like your magic." Some of the students hooted appreciatively. "One of the themes in this book is the effects of bullying, a large topic of concern in the muggle world as well as the wizard world. Please read part one for next week's class."

Beth finished distributing the books and went back to the front of the classroom. She beamed at the class and held up her hand. "Thanks so much for your attention and participation today. I'll see you next week."

James grinned at Sirius as he stood up to leave. "That was a great class. She certainly didn't need help to keep everyone's attention." He picked up his rucksack. "Ready?"

"No, go ahead," Sirius said. "I'll be a few minutes." James gave him a curious look but left without any comment.

Sirius took his time putting away his books as the rest of the class noisily left the classroom. He walked to the front of the classroom where Beth was packing up her cassette player and notes. Tedison had already left, looking far more relaxed than he normally did at the end of class. As Beth shut her notebook, a photo fluttered to the floor. Sirius picked it up and quickly glanced at it. Beth and a blonde girl wearing matching team jackets were looking at each other laughing. Draped around Beth was a muscular sandy-haired bloke, his head close to hers and his hands holding Beth's shoulders possessively. A dark-haired bloke was behind the blonde girl, smiling down at her. Sirius felt a drop in his stomach.

"Good job, teacher." Sirius brushed aside his misgivings about the bloke mauling Beth in the photo and gave her a small smirk. He handed the photo to Beth.

"Thanks," she muttered quickly putting it back in her notebook. She looked up and grinned. "Did you like the class?"

"Most interesting Muggle Studies class I've had," Sirius said honestly.

Beth beamed, her face turning a little pink. "They must normally be boring, huh?"

"The bar in this class is pretty low," Sirius admitted. "But you really were brill. You're a natural."

"Thank you," Beth's smile was open, her face alight. Sirius felt a slight hitch in his chest at her pleased expression. She picked up her rucksack and slung it over her shoulder. "Where are you off to now?" she asked as they left the room.

Sirius gave her a sideways look. "It's lunchtime."

"Oh," Beth flushed. "I don't have my schedule down yet."

"Aren't you hungry?" Sirius asked. "Breakfast was hours ago. I'm always famished by lunchtime."

"I lose my appetite when I get nervous," Beth said. "Now that my first class is over, I'll probably be hungry in a little while."

They entered the Great Hall. Beth noticed a tall, lanky wizard with dark long hair watching Lily who was mashing a piece of bread into James' mouth and laughing. She bumped Sirius' arm. "Who is that guy who keeps staring at Lily?"

Sirius face turned hard when he saw who she indicated. "Snape," the name was spoken so disdainfully, Beth flinched. "Don't talk to James about him. They detest each other."

Beth frowned in the general direction of Snape. "Because of Lily?" she asked. "Does Snape have a thing for her?"

Sirius nodded curtly. "James thinks so. He's probably right. Too often Snape seems to be lurking when Lily is around."


	6. Hogsmeade

"How did you like your first week here?" Lily and Beth were sharing the bathroom mirror as they put on their make-up before breakfast. It was a drizzly, cool Saturday and Lily was taking Beth to see Hogsmeade later in the day.

Beth grinned at Lily's reflection. "It went well. I survived teaching all of my muggles studies classes and that's a real achievement."

Lily shot a quick glance at Beth before busying herself putting away her mascara. "I think Sirius is interested in you," she kept her voice casual wanting to downplay this for Beth. She'd never seen Sirius like this before.

Beth frowned. "Is he? He flirts sometimes but other times he acts like he doesn't care."

Lily hadn't been kidding when she had labeled Sirius as moody. Beth had quickly learned to watch for signs to see whether he had decided to behave hot or cold towards her. She understood he had concerns about being involved with her. She had some issues of her own.

Hot Sirius was flirtatious and funny, joking and laughing easily with her, more than a bit on the handsy side. Cold Sirius' face was impassive and he held himself distant, only speaking to her out of politeness (which by Sirius' standards was often just a grunt when she spoke to him). Beth didn't bother trying to coax cold Sirius out of his mood. There was a simmering look in his eyes that hinted that cold Sirius just might explode if his shell was cracked.

Of course, there were more than two Sirius personalities. He was a regular Sybil. There was also warm Sirius, easily persuaded to become hot. Sometimes Beth amused herself by seeing how long it took her to change him from warm to hot.

Then there was livid Sirius. On Friday in Arithmancy, Beth had been accidentally hexed by Steve when he was goofing around with his girlfriend Anne. Beth had been busily working on an assignment, sitting sandwiched between Sirius and James. When her fingers could no longer move the pencil (she could _not_ write with a quill—that was pushing it just too far), she'd just stared at them stunned. It took her a minute to realize she couldn't move her arms either, or her torso or legs or pretty much any part of her body. It was terrifying and Beth's breathing became rapid as she struggled not to panic. Sirius noticed she had stopped writing and elbowed her. "Are you actually stuck on a problem for a change, Peterson?" When she didn't respond, he looked at her and immediately turned around in his seat, enraged. "Who the fuck hexed her?" He took out his wand and released Beth from the hex, but the following half-hour had been a textbook case in how not to handle anger. (For Steve, lesson 101 in survival: Don't piss off Sirius Black.) Steve had apologized to Beth so many times she felt guilty and finally assured him it was good that her first time hexed had been due to friendly fire.

Beth snapped back to the present when Lily spoke. "I think that's because he's not sure what to do about it. Sirius is used to fooling around with girls. He's not used to fancying them." Lily hoped this wouldn't scare Beth off. Sirius could be a prick but he was special to Lily.

"It's not because I'm a muggle?" Beth asked. She'd been worried about this ever since she'd noticed her attraction to Sirius.

Lily considered that carefully. "Not in a prejudiced way—like a muggle isn't good enough for him. But it might worry him that you're not going to be here long and there's a wizard war gaining traction."

Beth nodded grimly. It felt safe at Hogwarts but she'd sensed there was an ominousness that surrounded the future, especially to the seventh year students who would soon be finished here.

By late afternoon, Lily and Beth had been to every shop in Hogsmeade . "James is meeting us here in fifteen minutes at the Three Broomsticks," Lily said checking her watch. "We'll have a butterbeer together and then go back to Hogwarts. Unless you want to go back to any of the shops?"

Beth grinned and shook her head. "I've got my chocolate," she said holding up her bag of candy from Honeydukes "so I'm good."

They walked slowly down the street. It had been raining earlier but had the sky had cleared up and the air felt damp and clean. "Thanks for showing me around, Lily." Beth said. "This village is adorable. It's so different from the U.S. where many of our stores are in strip-malls."

Lily nodded. "It has a certain quaint ambiance, doesn't it?"

"I love it here," Beth took out her camera from her shoulder bag and snapped a shot of Lily walking.

"Still don't miss home?" Lily asked, her voice deceptively casual.

"No. I wrote to my mom and dad yesterday and told them how welcoming everyone here has been." Beth turned around to take a picture of the village street. "Oh, I just remembered one more place I want to see. Can you show me the Shrieking Shack?"

Lily started. "What?"

"Marlene told me it's haunted. I've never seen a haunted house before. I mean besides the dumb fake ones that companies rig up for Halloween and charge you to walk through." She shook her head ruefully. After living in Hogwarts, she'd never look at those poorly engineered haunted houses the same again.

"Um, it's kind of out of the way," Lily said hesitantly. "Can we go with James later? We might not make it back in time to meet him if we go now."

"Okay," Beth nodded. "Though I should warn you, I get spooked easily and it'll start getting dark soon. I might need to hang on to your arm for reassurance."

They headed to the Three Broomsticks and found a booth by the window. Many of the Hogwarts students had left to go back to the castle as the sun was low in the sky. By the time their butterbeers arrived, James had arrived with Sirius in tow.

"Sorry, Lil, Beth," James said as he slid into the booth next to Lily. "This prat followed me here."

Beth smiled at Sirius and was relieved when he smiled back warmly as he sat next to her. She gave Sirius five minutes to become hot. Beth passed her butterbeer to him. "Here. I'm full from too much chocolate today."

Lily passed her butterbeer to James but warned him, "I'm not as nice as Beth. We're sharing that."

"Fine by me," James took a long drink.

"Beth wants to see the Shrieking Shack," Lily announced. Beth could hear a warning in her tone. She looked up puzzled as James, Lily and Sirius exchanged weighted glances.

"That's a good idea," Sirius sounded totally normal and Beth decided she was imagining they were unsure about taking her there. "We probably should warn you, Beth, it's not as exciting as it sounds if it's a quiet night. The shrieks aren't heard every night."

"Good," Beth was relieved. "I have to see it just once, but you know how easily I scare. I'd rather see it when it's quiet."

"You have more to worry about from the Whomping Willow than the shack anyway," James told her.

"The what?" Beth asked.

"There's a huge willow tree near Hogwarts," Lily explained. "If you get too close, its branches will come down and swing at you. It could kill you."

"Why doesn't someone cut the tree down?" Beth looked at the other three in turn. "It sounds dangerous."

Sirius stared at James with his lips quirked. "That's a good question. James, why doesn't someone cut the Whomping Willow down?"

James looked perplexed. "No one has asked that before. That sounds totally logical." He scratched his head, avoiding Sirius and Lily's eyes.

"How would you get close enough to the tree to cut it down?" Lily asked practically.

"You guys can do magic. Surely there's a way to freeze the tree?" Beth asked.

"Maybe it's protected?" Lily hypothesized. "It's a magical tree. They may not want to kill it."

"They'd rather leave it to chance that someone could be killed by accident?" Beth was dismayed. "What if a first-year got too close to it?"

"All of the Hogwarts students have been taught to stay away," James tried to rationalize.

"Do you want to see Whomping Willow after we go to the Shrieking Shack?" Sirius asked Beth. He patted her arm. "I'll protect you from the killer tree."

Beth grinned as she checked her watch quickly. "Sure."

They left after finishing the butterbeers, which didn't take long since James and Lily were sharing one, and Sirius downed most of Beth's in a single gulp. The sun had set and the horizon was a beautiful mix of orange and pink. The temperature was dropping rapidly and Sirius draped his arm around Beth before she even shivered.

Sirius was right, the shack was anticlimactic and quiet. It certainly looked like it _could _be haunted, it was dilapidated and lonely on the outskirts of town. "It does look authentic," Beth cocked her head to the side and regarded the shack. She could imagine how it would feel haunted if screams were coming from it.

They walked on to Hogwarts, stopping to show Beth the Whomping Wilow. Beth looked at the tree skeptically. It looked like a normal stationary tree to her. Lily huddled in James' arms staring at the tree with foreboding.

"Don't move any closer," Sirius warned. He picked up a large rock and threw it at the tree. The rock hit the trunk and the tree twisted violently, its branches sweeping down trying to crush whatever had disturbed it. Beth leaped backwards in fright and Sirius wrapped his arms around her from behind protectively as she trembled. "Shit, that thing is vicious!" Beth cried.

"Yeah, you really have to be careful around it," Sirius' lips were close to her ear and Beth felt heat pooling in her stomach. The four of them watched the tree for several minutes until it gave up and stopped writhing, straightening up to look like a normal tree again. Sirius was still holding Beth and she leaned back against his chest, allowing herself to relax in his arms.

Later, as they entered the castle, Beth turned to Sirius with a slight frown. "The wizarding world certainly is dangerous."

Sirius looked at her oddly. "Yeah, it is."


	7. The Common Room on a lazy Sunday

Lily contentedly wrapped her arms around James and snuggled her face into his chest. The Common Room was crowded on this rainy Sunday afternoon, but she and James had moved a couch into the corner by the window and were enjoying pseudo privacy provided by the couch's back protecting them from the rest of the room.

James amused himself by arranging Lily's hair in different styles. He'd just finished admiring his latest creation, a high ponytail that used a long lock of her hair to tie it in place. Lily shook her head but sighed in satisfaction as his fingers began carefully threading through her hair to work out the tangles he had wrought.

"I'm worried Beth is homesick," Lily broke their silence without preamble. She'd debated whether to discuss this with James or not. It almost seemed to be violating Beth's confidence. Except Beth hadn't confided in her and James was her best friend. She wanted to talk it over with him.

James' fingers stopped moving in her hair and he brushed his hand against her cheek. "Why do you think that she's homesick?"

"I've heard her crying herself to sleep a couple of nights," Lily ran her hand up James' arm absently. "I know it's just her first week here and it's natural to be homesick. She never says anything and I can't exactly ask why she was crying, but it worries me she doesn't talk about it."

"She acts very happy during the day," James pointed out.

Lily nodded. "She certainly does. She's one of the most positive, cheerful people I've ever met." She pursed her lips. "But she can't be that happy if she cries that much at night."

"Have you asked her if she's homesick?" James fingers ran down Lily's back and she shivered.

"Yes, and she always denies that she is." Lily lifted her head from James' chest to look at him. "I doubt she's lying, she sounds totally sincere when she answers."

"Maybe she's sad about something else," James said thoughtfully. "Maybe she's not homesick in general but is missing one person in particular."

"You mean like a boyfriend?" Lily hadn't thought of that. Beth acted interested in Sirius in a way that made it seem there was no other bloke in the picture.

"If I wasn't at Hogwarts, there's only one person that I'd miss enough to be crying over at night," James told her. His eyes were amused but serious. "That would be you, Lily."

Lily beamed and scooted up so her lips could meet his, wrapping her arms around his neck. James returned the kiss enthusiastically and soon they forgot they were in a busy room surrounded by fellow Gryffindors. Although the couch back afforded them some privacy, they eventually heard a few wolf whistles and Jerry's voice calling "Get a room, Potter!" James responded with an explicit finger gesture over his head without removing his mouth from Lily's. Over the laughter, Mark yelled "Not the _Common_ Room!" Lily pulled away, her face crimson. "They have a point," she whispered giggling when James tried to bring his lips to hers again. "So do I," he growled, kissing her neck. Lily laughed again but scolded, "Not here, James."

James sighed in frustration but laid his head back against the armrest as Lily relaxed against his chest again. They were quiet for a few minutes before Lily broke the silence. "James?"

"Hmm?" he mumbled.

"Do you ever worry about what it's going to be like when we leave Hogwarts? Voldemort seems to be gaining momentum and everyone is going crazy. What if we can't be together? What if—"

"Hey," James stopped her. He gently turned her face so he could see her eyes. "Why would we not be able to be together?"

Lily squirmed uncomfortably. "If Voldemort takes over the Ministry of Magic, he won't allow muggleborns to work there. He'll try and take away our rights. You're a pureblood and I'm muggleborn. There could be pressure to keep us apart."

"Who cares if there is pressure?" James gave her a stern look. "No one that matters will try to keep us apart. We're going to fight Voldemort so he doesn't take over the Ministry of Magic or anywhere else. If he does come into power, we'll go underground to fight him. We'll never give up. I won't go anywhere without you, Lil. I'll never let us be separated."

Lily smiled, her worried expression replaced by a tender one. "How did I get so lucky to get you, James Potter?"

"It took you long enough to figure that out," James grumbled petulantly. "I'm pretty sure I was smitten a couple of years before you even deigned to think of me as more than an arsehole you wouldn't be caught dead with."

"I had to wait for you to grow up," Lily grinned at him.

"I'm pretty sure I had to wait for you to finally wake up and notice me," James continued to grouse.

"I love you now," Lily hitched her body up so her face was closer to his. "Can I make it up to you?" She started kissing his neck slowly. "All those years you had to wait?"

James pursed his lips to keep from smiling. "I guess so," he said. His voice was sulky, but his eyes were bright. "I had so many sleepless nights thinking about you."

"I kept you up at night?" Lily moved her lips up to his jaw. "You poor baby. It must have felt like torture."

"It was," James nodded. "I had to wait for you a really, really long time. While I was sleep deprived."

"What would you like me to do?" Lily's lips were at the edge of his mouth.

"Hmm," James pretended to deliberate. "We could go to the Room of Requirements. Just to have some privacy to discuss your offer further."

"Deal," Lily smiled at him. She pushed up from him and stood up, extending her hand to help him up. James jumped up and they started towards the Portrait Hole, his arm around her shoulders holding her tightly to him. "You drive a hard bargain, Potter."

"Glad you noticed," James' grin was knowing.


	8. Quidditch 101

The following Saturday was one of those rare exceedingly mild days for January. "It's perfect for a Quidditch match," Lily told Beth as they walked to the pitch. "Normally we have to huddle freezing in the rain and wind this time of year."

Beth had never seen a Quidditch match. She asked Lily the rules, but Lily just laughed and said she would try to explain during the match. "Not that I'm the best teacher," she grimaced.

The stands were packed with students, calling out to each other and laughing in the pre-game excitement. Lily and Beth found seats in the Gryffindor section. "Here," Lily handed Beth a pair of binoculars. Before Beth could look through them, something large whizzed by in the air above them making her almost drop the binoculars. The rest of the Gryffindor team followed James to the pitch and began circling in the air, throwing strange looking balls at each other as they warmed up.

Beth gawked at them. "Holy shit," she breathed. "They really can fly fast!"

Lily laughed. "Yes, it's a crazy sport. Kind of brutal, too. I get nervous every match that James will be hurt."

Beth looked through the binoculars and found Sirius. His face was set in concentration as he swung with an easy grace at the balls hit towards him by James. He moved on his broom with the confidence of a natural athlete and Beth kept her binoculars trained on him the entire warm-up. She saw that he looked towards her in the stands frequently and she finally gave him a thumbs up signal and saw his smile flash in return.

From the moment the match began, Beth sat mesmerized, her eyes glued to the action. Lily gave her a basic explanation of the rules but readily admitted she knew next to nothing about the strategy and what plays they used. Obviously, they were executing those plays quite well as they demolished Ravenclaw by hundreds of points to the delight of the screeching Gryffindor section.

Once their seeker ended Ravenclaw's misery, the Gryffindor crowd went crazy. The team took a victory lap around the pitch and when James flew over their section, he slowed down and dropped what Beth now knew was called a Quaffle to Lily with a wink. Lily laughed and blew him a kiss as she caught it. "That's become a tradition this year when we win," she told Beth as the Gryffindor section cheered.

"How many matches have you won this year?" Beth asked.

"All of them." Lily said proudly.

Beth and Lily headed to the field with the rest of the House of Gryffindor. Lily had no idea what Beth was thinking, but she remembered all too well how she confused she had been after her first Quidditch match.

They found James and Sirius near the locker rooms. James slung his arm around Lily as soon as she got near. She leaned up to kiss him. "Great game, James." He grinned and pulled her into a tight hug and laughed when she squealed. "You look way too neat and clean, Lil. You need a little sweat rubbed off on you." Lily laughed and swatted at his chest but soon gave up and hugged him back.

Sirius shook his head at them and then opened his arms to Beth. "Where's my congratulatory hug?" he asked, grinning. Beth surprised him by leaping into his arms with zeal, laughing.

"Well played, Black," she said her lips close to his ear. Sirius squeezed her tighter before pulling back enough to see her face. He tilted his head towards Lily who was chatting to James. "Did Lily tell you the rules?"

Beth nodded. Sirius gave her a quizzical look. "All of them? Lily's never really taken to Quidditch."

Beth smiled at him. "So I gathered."

He cocked an eyebrow at her. "What did you think? Did you and Lily spend your time chatting instead of watching the match?" He liked the feel of her in his arms and he kept holding her long past the friendly hug stage.

He was shocked when her face lit up. "No way! I loved it. That is the best sport ever—well, next to football and water polo that is."

Sirius' mouth dropped open and his arms tightened around her. "You're kidding, right? You actually liked it? Did you understand it?"

"I'm sure I don't get all the intricate details of the games' strategies, but I understood enough. Like that play when James and Katie screened Ravenclaw's defense so you had a clear shot of the goal. That was awesome." Beth's eyes were bright as she looked up at his face.

Sirius shook his head, reluctant approval in his eyes. "You worked that out during your first Quidditch match? There are players from the Hufflepuff team that still haven't figured that play out."

Beth grimaced. "Idiots," she stated succinctly. "Hey, what was that play you ran to get the final goal?"

Sirius grinned and set Beth down, keeping one arm wrapped securely around her. "'The Lily'? That's our newest play!" Sirius spoke loudly in his enthusiasm. "Marcia drops down and flies low after passing me the Quaffle. James is flying behind me at an angle where their keeper can't see him. Marcia moves into a scoring position to the left so the keeper has to watch both her and me." He was gesticulating as he spoke, showing her the movements of the players. "Then I fake a pass to Marcia, pull into a quick spin to the right and flick the Quaffle behind my back to James. James has an amazing move—no one else can do it—where he spins and uses the momentum as he's still turning to throw the Quaffle before the keeper can recognize the angle it's coming from. If we block the keeper's view of him until James is in that position, he always scores."

"Wait, what?" Lily and James had stopped talking and she was listening with a confused expression. "Did you call that 'The Lily'? Why is there a Quidditch play with my name?"

Guilt swept over Sirius' face. He looked at James with a clear apology on his face.

"It was Marcia's idea to name it that," James protested. He was glaring at Sirius as he spoke. "We came up with the play together but she named it. I told those arseholes to quit calling it that."

Sirius blanched. "I only use that name because that's how everyone else knows it when I call the play. I keep forgetting the real name for it."

Lily stared at him. "Again, _why_ is it named 'The Lily'?"

Neither James nor Sirius spoke. Beth caught Sirius' eye and her face turned red as she worked out the likely reason. She bit her lip and looked down, trying to avoid Lily's glance.

Lily frowned at James who was squirming guiltily. Sirius chose to stare off in the distance, watching groups of Gryffindors laughing and chatting. "Somebody better start talking," Lily's voice was clipped.

"James," Matthew hollered from behind them. He was standing by the door to the locker room. "We have to get together for our post-game meeting right now. McGonagall's here and she only has a few minutes. She wants to talk to the whole team."

Clearly this was not who Lily wanted to start talking, but Sirius dropped his arm from around Beth and started edging towards the changing room. James grimaced, torn. "Is it okay if we talk after the meeting, Lil? I'll be out in just a little while." Lily nodded despite her impatience to hear the story. They had just won the game that qualified them for the semi-championship match. James needed to be with his team when McGonagall congratulated them. James cast another worried look at her and kissed her quickly and then left. Sirius gave Beth a wide-eyed look as he followed James. The other Gryffindor Quidditch players followed, still celebrating their win.

Lily turned to Beth, her gaze narrowing suspiciously. "Do you know why that play has my name?"

"Um, I have a guess." Beth wondered if it would sound better coming from a neutral source. Was it her place to tell Lily?

"Which is?" Lily's face was grim, her tone guarded.

"I think its called 'The Lily' because the play is designed so that James scores," Beth said quietly.

Lily's face turned as red as a beet as the double entendre sunk in. "Shit!" She exclaimed. "I'm going to kill James and all those arseholes! What were they thinking? How fucking insulting is that?"

Beth bit her lip. "It is rude," she agreed. "But they probably just wanted to have an inside joke. You know how teams like to bond over weird personal stuff. My water polo team has a lot like that." Her voice trailed off uncertainly when she saw Lily's glare.

Lily stomped her feet. "Marcia is my friend. How could she do that? How could James let her?"

"It doesn't sound like James let her," Beth pointed out. "I think they call it that without his approval. He probably was trying to protect you by not telling you."

Lily was silent, her face averted. Beth watched her carefully trying to gauge her feelings. Lily was one of the nicest people Beth had ever met, and she felt awkward and troubled that Lily's feelings were hurt.

"Let's go sit down," Lily finally spoke and Beth nodded and followed her to the player's bench on the pitch. Lily hung her head, staring morosely at her feet. The minutes ticked slowly by and the pitch grew quiet as most of the students headed back to the castle.

Lily raised her head. Beth was relieved to see her face no longer looked upset. Instead her expression was calculating. "I think I know why Marcia did this," she started slowly. "I'm the Captain's girlfriend and I don't care much about Quidditch. Last month, James was half an hour late to an early morning practice. It was cold and rainy and they were all down here without him. It was my fault, he was with me in the Room of Requirement. I turned his alarm off before he woke up and then I forgot to wake him and dozed off." Her lips twisted. "Sirius told me later the team was furious. Marcia wouldn't talk to me all day."

Beth nodded. She didn't know what the Room of Requirement was, but this didn't seem the time to ask.

Lily's eyes narrowed as she continued. "It seems Marcia and I are overdue for a little chat. I may just have to—" She was interrupted by the arrival of James, rushing over. Marcia was a half-step behind him, perceptibly lagging, her eyes downcast. Sirius strode behind her, looking like a pirate ready to prod his victim to walk the plank if she slowed down too much.

James' eyes were anxious as he searched Lily's face. "I see you figured out why the play was named for you."

Lily nodded, gesturing to Beth. "Thanks to Beth, who apparently is the only one here capable of speech." Her gaze flicked between James and Sirius who both looked ashamed.

"I'm sorry, Lily," James apologized. "I guess I should have told you when I found out what they were calling that play."

Marcia stepped up closer to Lily, shaking her head. "Shut-up, James." She twisted her hands together. "James had nothing to do with this. He told us immediately to change the name. I kept calling it that behind his back to be funny. I'm sorry, it wasn't meant to hurt you. It was just a joke."

Lily stared at her. "I know," she finally conceded. "It's humiliating though. You understand that, don't you Marcia?"

Marcia flushed. "I didn't mean it to be!" Her voice was shaking a little. "I'm so sorry, Lily. I'll change the name and make sure no one calls it that again."

Lily nodded. "We'll talk later," she told Marcia ominously. Marcia nodded, her expression still scared and backed up a few steps before she whirled around to go to the locker room. Lily still looked offended but she smiled at James when he came to take her hand and reassured him. "I'm okay, James. You can go take your shower."

James and Sirius left, though Beth thought James was more likely to get injured walking to the locker room while watching Lily over his shoulder than he was playing Quidditch. At least he mostly looked where he was going when he flew. Beth wordlessly put her arm around Lily's shoulders and Lily rested her head against her for a few minutes. "Sometimes girls can be dicks too," she finally said and Lily laughed.

Sirius draped his arm around Beth as they started up towards the castle a few minutes later. "Thanks for telling Lily." His arm was friendly, he told himself. He was not at all feeling protective and warm when he cupped her small shoulder and she angled towards him.

Beth nodded. "I was hoping it would be easier if she had some time to digest it before you guys came back."

"It was my fault for forgetting the real name of the play.' The Lily' just sticks with me and it slipped out. I didn't realize she might overhear." Sirius glanced uneasily at the backs of Lily and James walking in front of them. James was leaning down to talk quietly in Lily's ear and she was laughing. He was relieved to see her mood lighter. "Lily is one of my best mates. I didn't mean to insult her."

"You might want to remind her of that," Beth told him carefully. It really wasn't her place to get involved but she knew Lily's feelings had been hurt by Sirius' part.

"Yeah, I will." Sirius sighed and then turned to squint at her. "You're a natural peacemaker, aren't you?"

Beth nodded. "I hate it when people are upset because they won't just talk to each other. It's such a waste." A look of regret passed over her face and Sirius frowned uneasily.

Sirus squeezed her shoulder. "You should have seen James during that meeting. He could barely talk to the team. He was a sodding mess over worrying about how Lily must be feeling."

"I'm surprised Marcia is the one who came up with that name." Beth complained. "It's really sexist. Why do we only say that guys score? It makes it sound like all guys want from girls is to sex. Clearly that's not the case with James and Lily."

"You got that right. James has been hankering after Lily for years. He's crazy about her and wants to settle down young." Sirius laughed. "Not like me. I'm all about having a good time."

Beth started and looked at him shrewdly. He was attempting to act nonchalant, but Beth knew the message had been meant for her. The words made her heart sink, but in all honesty it was what she expected. She decided to reassure him that she was not expecting a serious relationship, but she put a little bite in her words. "Yeah, you're way too much of a player to worry about that now, right?"

Sirius' smile hid relief at the casualness of her words, but he wasn't sure of the American slang. "What's a player?" he asked.

"A guy who wants to have sex with girls but doesn't want commitment," Beth explained.

Sirius couldn't argue that but he didn't like the sound of it coming from Beth. He steered her across the Entrance Hall towards the stairs to Gryffindor Tower. Beth understood. He wasn't sure why he felt this dissatisfied about it.


	9. Gryffindor Quidditch Celebration

James and Lily sauntered over to the couches by the fireplace. The Gryffindor Quidditch celebration party was in full swing, but Sirius and Beth had their heads bent over a piece of parchment.

"What are you two doing?" Lily asked. "Sirius, I thought you'd be in the middle of practicing for Mugs."

Beth looked up with a gleam in her eyes. "Sirius is diagramming a bunch of your Quidditch plays for me."

James laughed. "You should explain this stuff to Lily, Beth."

Lily snorted and smacked James in the arm. "Sorry, love. I'm just not that interested in Quidditch strategy. But I do enjoy watching the Captain play. He's cute." She winked at him and his grin widened.

James pulled Lily down on the couch, his arm slung around her shoulders. "What do you say Lily and I challenge you and Beth in Mugs, Sirius?"

Sirius grinned. "You're on." He turned towards Beth. "Do you know how to play Mugs?"

Beth shook her head. "Haven't a clue."

"Each team lines up cups of butterbeer on their side of the table. You take turns trying to toss ping-pong balls into their cups. If you miss, it's their turn. If you make it, they have to drink the mug of butterbeer you hit," Sirius explained.

"Oh, like Beer Pong," she exclaimed. "That's what we call that at home."

"Once the first through fourth years go to their rooms, we bring out the spiked butterbeer." Sirius grinned with relish. "Can you hold your liquor?" he asked Beth.

"Not at all," she grinned. "I'm a total lightweight. One beer will get me buzzed. Is spiked butterbeer stronger than American beer?"

James shrugged. "I've heard they're close enough."

"I'll drink twice as often as you," Sirius offered. "James has to do the same for Lily."

Lily giggled. "I'm pretty useless after the first few rounds."

James gave her an intimate smile. "She gets me laughing so hard, my aim gets off and we lose a lot."

Lily threw her arms around James and kissed him soundly on the lips. "Thanks for trying to cover for me, James. We both know who the weak link is in this game."

Sirius pulled Beth to her feet. "Come on, there's a table free. Let's grab it." James and Lily followed, Lily already proclaiming to James how quickly they would lose.

For the next two hours, they played game after game. Lily and Beth were soon feeling the effects of the alcohol and were often in hysterics over their missed shots. "Here," Sirius tried to instruct Beth after she set up to shoot, sure she'd miss for the third time in a row. "Turn your hips a little, like this." His large hands cupped her hips and moved her to a slight angle. Beth stumbled a little as a flash of desire snaked white-hot through her body. Her eyes shot up to Sirius' but his face remained impassive as he continued his explanation. "Now shoot, but keep your arm extended even after you release the ball."

Beth was pleased when her shot sunk into a cup. She jumped in excitement, twisting to hug Sirius. "Just like water polo! These balls are so light, I didn't think the follow through would matter. Thanks, teammate!" she laughed slightly blearily in his ear.

Sirius held her longer than necessary. "You play water polo?" he asked when he regretfully released her. His hands seemed to have a mind of their own around her.

"Yup," Beth was watching as James downed the cup she had hit.

James finished his drink and grinned across the table. "We should go swimming sometime in the pond."

Beth clapped. "Really? I'd love that. I don't want to get too out of shape while I'm here."

Sirius snorted. "It's fucking cold in that pond this time of year, Potter. Are you mental?"

"I learned a new charm that can heat a large body of water," James told Sirius with a smirk. "I think the pond is small enough that it will work. It'll be like our own heated pool."

Sirius looked a bit put out at this information. Lily, however, squealed. "It was so nice out today for January. Let's go later tonight," she said enthusiastically. James beamed.

By the time they headed down to the pond, Sirius had enough spiked beer sloshing through his system that he was less concerned about his swimming prowess, or rather lack of. Beth held his hand as they followed James and Lily, giggling quietly whenever she stumbled against him. Sirius had to clench his jaw several times to keep his hands from grabbing her body inappropriately.

It was a cool, crisp night and Sirius was surprised he was the only one seeming to reconsider the wisdom of this idea when they reached the pond. Lily picked up a thick stick and turned it into a torch with her wand, anchoring it in the ground so they could see. James touched his wand to the water, testing it a few times before nodding in approval. Sirius stood rooted to the ground when Beth quickly kicked off her shoes, tugged her shirt and jeans off and ran to the pond. His eyes followed her toned body as she splashed her way through the shallow water, laughing. "Come on," she turned towards him, beckoning.

James had shucked down to his boxers and grabbed Lily's hand as soon as she was ready. He and Lily ran after Beth and the three ploughed into deeper water. "Sirius, get your arse in here," James called. "The water is fantastic."

Sirius pulled off his shirt and pants and hesitantly followed them in. Once he had to swim, he carefully kept his head out of the water as he paddled to Beth. He was breathing heavily with the effort by the time he reached her. She grinned at him and looped her arms around his neck. Sirius was relieved that she was not putting any of her weight on his shoulders. She was treading water with her legs, effortlessly keeping her body from the chest up above the water line. He had been worried she would push him under if she hung on to him, but instead she helped him stay more securely afloat by moving one of her arms to wrap around under his arm to his back. Her touch, however, was making it harder for him to concentrate on not sinking. He kept his eyes on her face, struggling not to look down below her neck.

"How do you keep yourself up like that?" he asked a trace of admiration in his voice.

"We have to practice treading all the time in polo," she explained. "We do exercises where we hold weights above the water with our arms and use just our legs to stay up."

"How high can you get your body out of the water by just kicking your legs?" he asked.

Beth pushed away from him and kicked hard, propelling her body straight up. She came out of the water to her waist briefly before sliding back down. "Shit," Sirius said.

Beth smiled at him but Sirius was having a hard time getting that image of her halfway out of the water from his mind. He tried to think of something to say. "I don't swim much," he confessed.

"I can tell," she laughed lightly. Her pupils were dilated in the dim light. "Here, lay on your back against me. I'll pull you around."

"What? You've had too much spiked butterbeer, your judgment is impaired." Sirius couldn't keep the shock from his voice.

Beth laughed. "My judgment's fine."

"You're puny. I'll swamp you." Sirius used this as an excuse to look at the portion of her body that was above the water.

"No you won't," she shook her head. "I know how to hold you. The water will support most of your weight."

Sirius frowned doubtfully, but Beth swam behind him, swung her right arm securely across his right shoulder and chest and under his left arm. She pulled him back so that his head was supported against her upper body. He could feel her legs kicking under him and her left arm paddling as she gently moved him through the water. Tense at first, he relaxed as he felt how strong she swam even while towing his body weight.

On one of their laps around the pond, they passed James and Lily near the edge, diving to the bottom and practicing hand stands so that only their legs stuck high and straight out of the water. James chortled when he saw Sirius gliding by, propelled by Beth. "Oy, Sirius," he called. "How'd you manage to talk her into doing all the work?"

Sirius only bothered to glare balefully at James. James splashed at him before Lily jumped on his back piggy-back style. "Take me for a ride too, James?" she cajoled and James struck out across the pond, Lily laughing on his back.

"The water's getting cold," Sirius noted after their third slow lap around the edge of the pond. "James' spell must be wearing off." Beth towed him back to where the water was waist-high and Sirius put his feet securely on the rocky pond bottom. He turned towards Beth who was watching him, the light from the torch reflected in her eyes. "Your turn for a ride," Sirius said and reached out and scooped her up into his arms, splashing as he carried her through the shallow water towards land. He pretended to drop her and she squealed "Sirius, don't you dare!" as she clung tighter to his shoulders. Sirius felt the small handle he had on his self-control waver as he gently set Beth on her feet. He tried not to stare at her in her nylon underclothes in the torch light, more revealing now that they were wet. He was pretty sure he'd failed when Beth shivered and crossed her arms over her chest, her face flushing despite the cold. Sirius turned away to hide his physical reaction, shook himself mentally and grabbed one of his socks. "Here," he transfigured the sock into a towel and handed it to her. "This is warm."

Beth gasped in pleasure as she folded herself into the warm towel. "Thank you," she effused. "This magic you can do is amazing stuff."

Sirius grinned and transfigured his other sock into a towel for himself. James came stomping out of the pond, Lily still happily perched on his back. "Here," Sirius tossed them both towels transformed from James' socks.

"Come here, Beth. I'll help you get dry." Lily motioned Beth over to where she stood by their clothes. "Turn your back to the gits," Lily directed "and open your arms holding your towel across your back." Lily ran her wand over Beth's underclothes and Beth felt the warmth as they quickly dried.

"Thanks!" Beth grinned. She held Lily's towel up for her as Lily waved her wand over her own body. The girls pulled on their clothes and Lily tossed their towels to James who transfigured them back to socks. He stopped when he held them up together. "One of these is your nasty sock," he said to Sirius, tossing one of the socks to his friend.

Once they were all dressed, James offered Lily another piggyback ride back to the castle and she jumped on his back. "Race, Sirius?" James called.

Sirius cocked an eyebrow at Beth who nodded. She hopped on his back and he stepped next to James, bending down in a racer's start position. Beth put her mouth next to his ear and whispered, "We have the advantage since I'm smaller than Lily. Don't embarrass us by losing." Sirius choked and dropped one hand holding up her leg for a minute to reach back and tickle her up her side. Beth squirmed, giggling but managed to hang on tightly with her arms around his shoulders so she did not fall off. The effects of the spiked butterbeer had worn off during their long swim and she positioned herself on Sirius' back to best balance her weight so he could run faster.

"Ready, set, go!" Beth called. James and Sirius took off sprinting. Sirius and James were fairly equal in speed, and Sirius beat James by a few feet thanks to his lighter load. Lily shook her head at Sirius. "I weigh more than Beth. You need to carry some extra weight next time." James opened the door to Hogwarts and they stepped inside.

"Quit making excuses for your wuss of a boyfriend," Sirius chuckled. "He can't help it that he's weaker than me." James lunged at Sirius and the two of them started wrestling.

Lily shook her head. "I'm glad girls don't need to physically pummel each other to bond."

"You don't want to wrestle me, Lily?" Beth teased.

Sirius froze, his effort to pin James' arm behind his back momentarily forgotten and he looked at Beth with a gleam in his eyes. James took advantage of his distraction to grab him in an upright headlock. "Say uncle," James panted.

"My uncle's a freak arsehole who spawned a she-devil incarnate," Sirius said.

James snickered and shoved him away to let him go. "That goes along with the rest of your family besides you."

Beth looked at Sirius, surprised. James hadn't said that in a teasing way, more matter of fact. Far from being offended, Sirius was clearly in total agreement. Lily saw Beth's expression and mouthed "Long story." Beth firmly closed her mouth and by the time Sirius had straightened up and come back to her side, she had schooled her features to hide her curiosity. Sirius put his arm around her and the four of them walked back to Gryffindor Tower in high spirits.


	10. Swimming Lesson

Sirius saw Beth sitting at one of the tables in the Common Room. She was writing furiously in her notebook, the tip of her tongue on the edge of her lip in concentration. He walked quietly up to stand next to her. Beth didn't notice him at first and Sirius frowned when he saw she had the picture of her with her friends that he'd seen previously sitting in front of her.

"Hey," he pulled out a chair next to her and Beth jumped.

"Oh, hi," Beth said. "Sorry, I was concentrating. I didn't see you."

"Lesson planning?" he leaned back in his chair and indicated her notebook.

"Yeah," Beth nodded. She followed Sirius' gaze and seemed to notice her photo. She moved to sweep it up, but Sirius grabbed her hand and stopped it.

"Who are your mates?" he asked trying to make his voice sound casual.

By the way Beth's eyes snapped up to his, he hadn't succeeded. She looked back at the picture and pointed to the blonde girl first. "Diane, my best friend. Behind her is Joshua and behind me is Andy." A shadow passed over her face as she spoke.

Sirius stared at her. Beth's cheeks turned pink at his scrutiny but she stayed silent. "Boyfriend?" he finally said, pointing to Andy.

"Past tense," Beth replied shortly. "It didn't end well." Sirius was relieved that at least it had ended. He didn't know what he would have done if she had told him that they were going to get back together when she went home.

"What happened?" Sirius asked.

"I caught him with another girl," Beth said. For the first time Sirius saw a cold disdain in Beth's normally warm eyes.

"Unforgiveable, eh?" Sirius said. He watched her curiously. She appeared to be struggling to hide some strong emotion.

"In my book," Beth replied. Her eyes flashed to his again and she seemed to be debating whether to say more. She opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by the approach of Remus. She shot a quick look of regret at Sirius and closed her mouth.

"Hey Mooney," Sirius hid his disappointment at missing what Beth had wanted to say as he greeted Remus. He hoped Beth would decide to tell him whatever was on her mind later. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed she carefully tucked the picture away in her notebook.

Remus pulled out a chair to join them. "Hi Beth, Sirius." He smiled at Beth and gave a short nod to Sirius.

"What did you call Remus?" Beth looked perplexed.

"Moony," Sirius said.

"How did you come up with that gem of a nickname?" Beth asked, aghast.

"He hates the full moon," Sirius looked at Remus who was giving him a deadpan stare. "It scares him."

"Oh," Beth shrugged. She didn't appear to notice the tension between Remus and Sirius. "I was thinking it was for a different reason." When Sirius raised an eyebrow, she elaborated. "It's probably just American slang."

"Do I want to know what that slang means?" Sirius asked slowly.

"Not so much," Beth shook her head. She gave Sirius a teasing grin. "Maybe I should give you a special nickname."

"I already have a perfectly good nickname," Sirius protested. She had a gleam in her eyes that did not bode well for him.

Beth had heard Sirius and James call each other by their strange nicknames. "That's for you and your fellow Marauders." She paused deep in thought. "Hm."

Remus chuckled. "He's called a lot of names by other girls. Prat, arsehole, git. The list goes on and on."

Beth laughed. "He's a special case, isn't he Remus?"

"Very," Remus nodded. Sirius rolled his eyes at their lame attempts at humour.

"Let's see," Beth tapped her finger against her chin. "If we follow the premise you used for Remus' nickname, we should call you H2O." She proclaimed this with a flourish, an expectant look on her face as she watched Sirius.

"Why the fuck would you call me that?" Sirius glared at Beth.

"Because you're too scared of the water to properly swim," Beth talked with the simple tone of someone explaining to a child. Remus coughed and turned his face to the side, trying to cover his mouth to hide his amusement. Sirius gave him a hard look and then swung his head suspiciously to Beth, who was carefully keeping a straight face.

"I can fucking swim," Sirius argued.

Beth gave him a skeptical look. "I've seen the way you dog paddle. You're too worried to put your face in the water to swim well."

Remus snorted. "She's right, Sirius. You never put your face in the water."

Sirius threw out his arms in frustration. "Because the water here is fucking cold! Take me to the Mediterranean and I'll put my face in."

"Are you sure it's not something else? The pond wasn't at all cold last night." Beth eyed him with a different expression. Sirius was afraid it might be pity.

"Don't try and psychoanalyze me." Sirius snapped. "There's nothing wrong with swimming with my head up."

"Yeah, sometimes swimming heads up is fine. When you're rescuing someone or playing water polo, you have to." Beth shook her head. "That's not what you're doing."

"Do you know what is just like a fish out of water?" Remus joked. "Sirius _in_ the water!"

Sirius was not amused. "I don't sink. Unlike a fish out of water, I don't die."

"You hardly move either," Beth pointed out. "You fight the water and exhaust yourself swimming a few feet. You'd probably drown if you fell in the water more than twenty feet from the shore."

Sirius frowned. "Well…I did almost drown once when I was a little kid. Ever since then, I just didn't want to take swim lessons. I don't like having my face submerged."

Beth nodded sagely. "I should have known. Everyone has their weak spot- even the big tough Quidditch star."

"It's not a weak spot," Sirius muttered. "It's a choice. I'm just making a choice." Remus snickered and Sirius glared at him.

"I'll teach you," Beth announced. "I need to work out in the pond at least a few days a week anyway. I'll give you swimming lessons before I do my laps."

"Are you crazy? I don't need to torture myself by getting in that effing water." Sirius shuddered."And you're tiny—you'll get hypothermia this time of year out there."

"I told you, James is willing to put a spell on the water to warm it up like he did for us last night." Beth cocked her head and leaned closer to Sirius, putting her hand on his arm. "Come on, Sirius. I promise I'll be gentle with you." Her grin was teasing.

Sirius couldn't help but laugh. "That's normally my line."

Beth looked away. "I figured as much." She tried to not let it show that her stomach sank when Sirius made cracks that referenced his past with other girls. When she looked at him again, Sirius was watching her perceptively and she gave him the best smile she could muster. "So, tomorrow after lessons?"

"So soon?" Sirius grimaced. "Can't you give me a few weeks to get ready?"

Remus couldn't stop his derisive snort as Beth gave Sirius a disbelieving stare. "What do you need to do to get ready? You put on a swimming suit and walk to the pond!"

Sirius stared back at her, his mind frantically searching for an excuse. Swimming was one of his least favorite activities although he felt more confident than Beth that he could go a long distance with his dog paddling. On the other hand, it would be fun to have Beth teach him and seeing her in a swimsuit was a bonus. "Fine," he conceded gruffly. "I'll have James tell me how to do the spell to warm the pond."

The next afternoon, they walked through a fine drizzle to the pond. Sirius muttered about pneumonia and his so-called swim teacher endangering his life the entire way to the pond. Beth listened with a knowing grin on her face and finally pointed out that in the heated pond they would be warmer than he was during a Quidditch practice in this weather.

They stripped to their bathing suits quickly. Beth carefully put their bags with their towels and clothes under a plastic tarp to keep dry while Sirius warmed the pond. She pulled her hair to a low ponytail to keep it out of her way while she taught Sirius. She shivered in the cool drizzle and hurried to the edge of the warm pond. Sirius had set aside his wand and was watching her.

"I have to give you my safety speech first," Beth began as he joined her and they waded into the pond. "This is important. Anyone, even the best swimmer, can drown. You could get a muscle cramp, especially in cold water, and you might be too debilitated to swim. Or you could bump your head diving in. Or you think you can swim farther than you really can. It's _never_ safe to swim alone."

Sirius grinned. "Not something you have to worry about with me, seeing as I usually don't bother to swim at all."

The swimming lesson was more fun than Sirius expected. Beth was a superb teacher and she made sure he was never uncomfortable. He kept her laughing with sarcastic observations and at the end of the lesson (deemed "free time" by Beth who always knew to leave a student with a fun ending) they fought in waist-high water to take each other down. They were fairly evenly matched; Sirius was bigger and stronger but Beth was a much better swimmer and her favorite tactic was to dive under him and pull him down by grabbing his legs from underwater.

Sirius declared he had won after he picked her up and carried her out of the water ("How is that winning?" Beth protested. "The object of the game was to get the other person to fall _in_ the water, not take them out of the water."). "Do you mind sticking around for a little while so I can work out?" Beth asked as he set her down. "I brought your book I assigned from Muggle Studies if you don't feel like staying in the pond."

"You brought me homework? Only you would do that." He shook his head. "Go swim. I'll practice my elementary backstroke in the shallow water." Beth grinned and ran back into the water, striking out across the pond with motions much more efficient than his.

When she finished, they walked slowly out of the pond. "I love how relaxed I feel after a good workout," Beth said smiling. Sirius handed her a large towel and then touched it with his wand so it would be warm. The drizzle had stopped but the air was cold and they hurriedly pulled on sweats over their suits.

"I talked to Lily," Sirius told Beth keeping his tone casual as he put on his shoes.

Beth's head popped up from tying her shoelaces. "Yeah?" her eyes searched Sirius' face.

"She understands that I didn't mean it that way when I slipped and called the play by her name." Sirius' face was impassive but Beth knew it was important to him that Lily was not upset with him.

"That's good." Beth's eyes were warm as she looked at him. "Do you feel better now?"

Sirius smiled as he met her understanding eyes. "Yeah." He stood up and took her hand to pull her up. "Thanks for the lesson."

Beth nodded with a small smile. "Next time, I'm going to teach you how to tread water," Beth informed him as they hurried back to the castle. "And we'll work on your side breathing for the crawl stroke."

"I shouldn't always be the student," Sirius' brow furrowed. "What can I teach you?"

Beth pursed her lips. "What are you good at?" When he gave her a wicked grin, she backtracked. "That I want to learn, you conceited jerk?"

"We can't play Quidditch since you can't fly," Sirius rubbed his chin. He opened the door for her and they stepped into the welcome warmth of the castle. "How about cricket? I can teach you the basics inside until the weather is nice enough to play outside."

"That sounds like fun," Beth grinned. She studied Sirius as they walked towards the staircase. Despite her best efforts, it was becoming increasingly difficult not to want to be more than friends with him. He noticed her watching him and winked at her. Beth's heart sped up. There was no doubt she was in trouble here.


	11. To make a cake

"Beth," James strode up and sat on the other side of her from Sirius. Beth and Sirius were relaxed in front of the fire with no concerns about homework on a Friday afternoon. "I need your opinion."

"Really?" Beth looked so pleased, Sirius rolled his eyes. She needed to up her standards. When he told her that, she grinned. "But then I wouldn't be able to hang out with you."

"It's Lily's birthday on Monday." James ignored their banter and reached in his pocket to pull out a box. "Do you think she'll like this?" He extended it towards Beth.

Beth opened the box and her smile grew wider. It held small gold emerald earrings, the colour the same as Lily's eyes. "She'll love them," Beth told James confidently. He grinned as he accepted the box back.

"Let's make Lily a cake!" Beth clapped her hands in excitement. "We'll have time to do it on Sunday."

"Why make a cake?" Sirius frowned. "We can just order one from the house elves."

"Because it will be fun!" Beth turned to James, her eyes alight with anticipation. "What kind of cake does Lily like?"

"Chocolate," James replied thoughtfully. Sirius could tell by the look on his face that he was seriously considering Beth's idea.

"I have an awesome recipe for chocolate cake. It's rich and fattening." Beth shook James' arm. "Can we get ingredients and access to the kitchen?"

"Yeah," James smiled. "Make me a list of the ingredients. I'll pass it along to the house elves and ask for an area to work in."

"Perfect." Beth turned to Sirius. "Do you want to help too?"

Sirius pretended to think about it for a minute but he knew he wouldn't miss this for anything. "Sure, alright," he muttered off-handedly. Over Beth's beaming face, he saw James shake his head at him, not at all fooled.

They met on Sunday after lunch in the Entrance Hall. "Luckily Lily had plans to help Marlene with her Potions homework," Beth told Sirius and James as they headed towards the stairs to the kitchen. She was lugging a bag on her shoulder. "I'm an awful liar. My face gives everything away."

"You could have told her you were helping James and I with a muggle project," Sirius pointed out. "That's pretty much the truth."

"Yeah, but she might have asked what the muggle project was," Beth huffed. "Seeing as she has insight into muggles herself."

James pushed open the door to the kitchen and turned right. A baking area had been left prepared for them. There were mixing bowls, utensils, various sized pans and all of the ingredients sitting on a long counter. "Perfect!" Beth proclaimed as she pulled a piece of paper from her pocket. "They gave us lots of extra ingredients. We can double the recipe since there are two Bundt pans." She set down the large bag she had brought.

"What is that for?" Sirius asked.

"I brought my video camera," Beth said. "I'm going to set it in the corner to record some of this." Sirius raised an eyebrow at James as Beth set up the camera on a strange-looking three-legged metal contraption that seemed to be designed to hold it up.

"So, how do we start?" James asked once Beth had turned on the camera.

Beth set down the recipe. "First we cream the butter with the sugar. This recipe needs a lot of beating until the consistency is right."

"Oh," James looked at the recipe to see how much butter to use and frowned, puzzled.

"Sorry," Beth said. "It's in American measurements. Let me convert it for you." She showed him where to cut the block of butter for the correct amount. As James put the butter in the bowl, Beth told Sirius how much sugar they needed.

"It's kind of like potions," Sirius said as Beth poured the sugar into the measuring cup he held for her.

"Exactly!" Beth had heard a great deal about potions from Lily already. "Except we don't have to be quite as precise."

Beth grabbed a large spoon and gave it to James to cream the butter and sugar. After a few minutes, he took out his wand. "Too much manual effort," he explained to Beth who was cracking open walnuts with Sirius. James twisted his wand and the spoon began beating the butter and sugar.

"That's even better than using an electric mixer," Beth said. "It's much easier than doing it all by hand."

While James oversaw his own version of an electric mixer, Beth and Sirius measured and brought ingredients to slowly add to the batter. Every time she turned around, Sirius was so close she bumped into him. Evidently hot Sirius was in the kitchen. Beth knew it was on purpose when his hands continually grabbed her waist to steady her. Her heart was beating faster than normal and she could feel her cheeks were warm.

"The walnuts get mixed in last," Beth said when the cake batter was smooth after all the other ingredients had been added. She carefully stuck a finger into the edge of the bowl as it spun and put it in her mouth. "Mmmm," she sighed, pulling her finger out slowly. She saw Sirius staring at her and her face heated up. "Do you want to try it?" She babbled hastily to him."Sampling the batter is the best part of baking."

James quickly put his finger in the bowl and happily tried it. "This is really good, Beth," he rubbed his stomach. "Is there enough extra batter so we can eat some now?"

Sirius' eyes were still fixed unblinkingly on Beth, who began to feel uncomfortable. Without breaking eye contact, he reached around her to get to his hand to the bowl. He sucked a huge dollop of chocolate batter from his finger, his eyes holding Beth's the entire time. "Delicious," he grunted as he watched her face redden. James swiftly turned away to keep from laughing.

Beth hastily grabbed the walnuts and handed them to James to pour into the spinning bowl. After they were folded into the batter, James pulled out his wand to send a spell that would remove the spoon and lift the bowl over the pans to pour the batter into them. Still flustered, Beth turned away hurriedly, intent on checking the temperature of the oven. Sirius was close behind her and she bumped into him and stumbled. Sirius reached out to grab her but in doing so smacked James' wand arm just as he cast the spell. His wand clattered to the floor and the spell shot the bowl of batter away from the waiting Bundt pans and over the three bakers' heads. Before James could pick up his wand to shoot out a counter-spell, the bowl carefully poured the batter over Sirius, Beth and then James.

Beth, Sirius and James stared at each other as the thick batter slowly dripped down the back of their heads and on their foreheads. Beth took a swipe of thick batter off her forehead before it could run into her eyes and stuck it in her mouth. "Well, this is one way to have more batter to eat."

The three all burst out laughing. James grabbed a spoon, filled it with batter from his hair and hurled it at Sirius, hitting him on the neck. Sirius retaliated by flinging a gob of batter at James' stomach. "Looks better on the outside than on the inside of your bloody stomach." Beth was bent over double witnessing their antics, her laughter making her too weak to do anything but clutch her stomach.

"You're not getting off that easy," Sirius told Beth with a leer, easily grabbing both of her wrists in one of his hands. With his other hand, he took a healthy blob of cake batter from his cheek and smeared it over her chin, using his thumb to outline her lips. Beth's heartbeat sped up as she tried to twist out of his grasp, giggling.

Beth managed to wrest her hands free and called "Take that!" as she grabbed the ends of her hair and flicked it toward Sirius so that the batter from her hair splattered him. Sirius lunged at her, but James caught him from behind.

"Gotcha Padfoot!" James grabbed Sirius in a headlock and rubbed batter into his shirt. Beth took advantage of Sirius' helplessness to paint a chocolate moustache, beard and eye patch on Sirius while James held him captive. "You look like a pirate," she chortled at him, surveying her handiwork.

Sirius shoved James away and the three collapsed on the floor, fresh laughter erupting each time they looked at each other.

"Shit, what a mess," Sirius said when he was able to talk. "It looks like I should clean it up as James is obviously fucking inept with spells."

"Let's see how well your spells work when some git rams your wand," James snorted. "How the hell did you bump into me anyway?"

"Beth's fault," Sirius tilted his head toward her guilty expression.

"I didn't know you were right behind me," Beth's laughter had subsided to giggles. "I was just going to make sure the oven had preheated long enough and was ready."

"I'm pretty sure it's ready now," James said and they broke out laughing again. Sirius took out his wand and cleaned up the batter once they had calmed down and they stood looking at the empty cake pans.

"I think I understand now why the house elves gave us extra ingredients. Round two?" Beth asked and they started again. This time they successfully made the cakes without mishap though Sirius still got in Beth's way several times. Beth wasn't sure if she was being seduced or teased but she had to clench her fists to keep from grabbing him back.

While the cakes baked, they pulled up some stools and Beth taught Sirius and James three-handed pinochle with cards she had brought in her camera bag. "We can teach Lily and play it with partners later," Beth said smiling

"I call dibs on Beth as my partner," Sirius told James, amazed at how well she counted cards when playing for tricks.

James nodded patronizingly. "Understood. You need her to compensate for how shitty a card player you are."

"Remind me who crushed you at poker last month." Sirius gave James a cocky grin.

They left the cakes cooling with instructions for the house elves for when they would pick it up. Beth packed up her video camera and slung the bag on her shoulder as they started out of the kitchen. Sirius surprised her when he grabbed her bag and put it over his shoulder. "Let me carry that for you," he said with a strange look.

"Thanks," Beth said quietly. Over her head, James grinned and gave Sirius a mocking thumbs up.

"Ohhhhh," Lily sighed when she took her first bite of her cake the next day. "This is decadent! Did the house elves get a new recipe?"

Beth, Sirius and James exchanged pleased grins. "_We_ made it for you," James burst out. "It was Beth's recipe."

Lily looked touched. "You made it?" Her head swiveled between the three of them. "That's so sweet!" She jumped up to hug Sirius and Beth and kiss James. "Have you two ever baked a cake before?" She asked James and Sirius.

"No, Beth had to teach us," Sirius grinned. "The finished product is good, but she's a sloppy baker."

Beth smacked him in the chest. "Hey," she warned. "No ratting out the teacher."

"It was quite an experience," James nodded. He had Lily in stitches as he told her the details of their making of the cake. "I wish I could have seen that," she said when he finished, wiping her eyes.

"In a way, you can," Beth told her. "I set up a video camera in the corner. It was set so it will show the action in fast motion. I figured I could use it for my muggle studies class to show how muggles bake. I didn't realize we'd have to utilize so much magic."

Later, after Lily complained her abs hurt from laughing too hard over the video and made a muggle comparison about the three bakers that only Beth understood, Lily cried when she opened the earrings from James. Watching her and James, Sirius felt a stab of jealousy over what they had. He looked at Beth, happiness for Lily radiating from her face. This girl was having too strong of an effect on him. It disturbed him how much he wanted a real relationship with Beth.


	12. Strings

"Hey Sirius, James," Beth slid into her seat in Arithmancy the next Friday. James responded with an open smile and a cheerful wave, Sirius merely grunted. Beth mentally braced herself for another class with cold Sirius and pulled out her notebook and pencil.

Professor Venn gave the class time to start their assignment after he finished his lecture. Beth settled down to work alone as James had been excused for Head Boy business (which Beth was pretty sure meant he and Lily were making good use of James' empty dorm room. Beth didn't know how but James always seemed to know when Lily was free and where to find her). Her Calculus class last semester had already covered this material and she worked quickly through the problems ignoring the brooding Sirius next to her.

"Beth," Jeff from two rows back slid into James' seat on her left. "Have you figured out number ten?"

"Yeah," Beth angled towards Jeff. Their heads bent close together as Beth quietly went through the problem with him showing him each step. Jeff frowned as he scratched out his previous work with his quill. "Fucking quills should come with erasers," he said, shooting her a sideways smile. Now that Beth was helping teach muggle studies, witches and wizards often dropped muggle words in the conversation when talking to her.

Beth flashed him a grin, not bothering to point out that he could use magic which was light-years better than an eraser. If her students wanted to impress her with their grasp of muggle knowledge, she was not going to try and stop them.

Jeff reached across her to grab the pencil from her right hand. "Hey," Beth protested. "I still need that."

Jeff pretended to inspect the eraser and then leaned over to erase a mark on her paper, his arm and shoulder pressed up against hers. "This is pretty brill," his face was close to Beth's. "Muggles do have some great things going for them including beautiful girls." His eyebrows lifted in a suggestive manner.

Beth's eyes opened wide and she leaned back and away from him. Was he actually _flirting _with her? When she was right next to Sirius? Aghast, she tried to shoot a surreptitious look at Sirius to see if he'd noticed. What she saw made her quail. His face was darkly furious. His habitual cold Sirius scowl looked friendly in comparison to this glowering expression. His eyes were narrowed and the formerly banked heat now looked ready to boil over. Beth gulped, not sure what to do to staunch Sirius' fury.

Jeff noticed Beth's recoil and he looked at her, and then followed her eyes to Sirius' face. What he saw made him flinch and he jumped out of the chair, beating a hasty retreat to his own desk after muttering a quick thanks to Beth.

Once he'd forced the competition away, Sirius gave Beth one last glare and then went back to working on his assignment. Beth was left feeling curiously both relieved and disappointed. She silently finished her assignment while seething inwardly. What right did he have to scare off other guys? He had never asked her out or even told her he was interested in her. He didn't _own_ her and she had every right to make decisions for herself about _who_ she did _what_ with.

When the class was over, Beth quickly packed her things into her backpack, anxious to get out of there as soon as possible. She could feel the heat of Sirius' stare on her profile. She didn't need to hurry, she had a free planning period next before her class teaching the second-year Muggle Studies, but she had built up a righteous fury and she didn't want to talk to Sirius.

"You didn't have to let him slobber all over you," Sirius bit out before she could leave. Beth stopped and stared at him in outrage. Was he seriously blaming _her_?

"You're kidding, right? I didn't do anything!" Beth almost snarled.

Sirius' eyes were fierce and his mouth was a hard line."You didn't cut him off. You're too fucking nice to prats like him."

"I'm beginning to think the only prat I'm too fucking nice to is _you_, Sirius!" Beth shouldered her backpack and almost ran from the room without waiting for his response.

She practically sprinted down the hall and around the corner. "Beth," someone called and she turned to see Remus hurrying to catch up with her. "What's the rush?" he said when he reached her. His usual calm manner and friendly smile felt soothing.

"Sorry, Remus," Beth stopped and turned to him, forcing a smile. "I'm a bit pissed at your mate and I was in a bit of a hurry to get away from him." She tugged her backpack off her back and dropped it on the floor, trying to rub the tension from her shoulders.

"What's Sirius done now?" Remus didn't even need to bother to ask which mate Beth was referring to.

"Nothing," Beth deflated a little now that she was away from cold/simmering Sirius and talking to someone who actually acted rational. "He just scared off another guy who was trying to talk to me." Beth took a deep breath and sighed.

"Ah," Remus didn't look surprised. "Staking his territory?" He shot her an astute look. "But he hasn't shown his hand to you, has he?"

"That about sums it up," Beth sighed again. She looked at Remus with an apologetic smile. "Let's talk about something more interesting to you than my problems, Remus."

"What makes you think your problems aren't interesting to me?" Remus grinned down at her. "I like living vicariously through my mates."

Beth frowned and tilted her head, studying him. "Why don't you have a girlfriend, Remus? You're one of the nicest guys I've met."

Remus shifted his feet, his eyes no longer meeting hers. "Just haven't met the right girl I guess."

"Girls must be lining up to go out with you," Beth said cautiously. She could feel Remus closing up and she knew she needed to tread carefully.

"I'm guess I'm just picky," Remus met her eyes but his were guarded. "Not to worry, I'm sure I'll find someone someday."

Beth nodded, knowing he wanted her to let it go. "She'll be a lucky witch." She smiled and put her hand on his arm.

Remus smiled, relief that she was dropping the subject flooding his face. "Hey, I really liked that book you lent me, 'One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest'."

Beth's face lit up. "It's great, isn't it?" She gave him a conspiratorial smile. "Mac remind you of anyone we know?"

Remus grinned. "He definitely has some _serious _authority issues." They both cracked up and stopped, guiltily, when the real Sirius came around the corner. Sirius scowled, his dark mood from watching the prat Jeff trying to flirt with Beth becoming bleaker when he saw her laughing with Remus. Remus and Beth burst out again at his expression. This didn't help Sirius' mood and he fought to remember why he shouldn't be with Beth.

"You laugh too much," he coolly informed Beth as he sidled up next to her. He stifled his pang of regret that her laugh was abruptly cut off as she turned towards him.

"You bitch too much," she shot back.

"The world is not a light, happy place," Sirius continued glaring at her. "People hurt each other every day. There's a fucking war going on in the wizard world." What was he talking about? He was pretty sure he was just trying to persuade himself why he shouldn't date Beth more than anything. He clenched his hands into fists to keep himself from touching her and watched in consternation as her eyebrows drew together in a frown.

"There are other wars then just here," Beth retorted. "It doesn't help any of the people involved if we act all gloomy and grouchy."

"Maybe some of us are realists." Sirius put his face close to hers, his eyes glinting.

"Maybe some of you are masochists." Beth leaned even closer towards him, lips pursed.

"You're a fucking Pollyanna." His voice was harsh.

"You're a stupid Heathcliff." Beth's normally warm eyes were narrowed with anger.

"Maybe your little light-hearted cheerfulness just gets grating sometimes." Sirius felt the tension between them ratchet up another notch.

"You drive me up the wall," Beth threw up her hands at him in frustration.

"I want to drive you up against the wall." The words were out before Sirius realized he meant to say them. His heart was pounding erratically but he felt relief now that it had been said. Beth froze, her eyes widening. Remus sputtered, "That's my cue to exit." He left without either Beth or Sirius breaking their eye contact.

Beth's mouth hung slightly open. Her gaze flicked between his eyes and his mouth. He could see her pulse moving at the base of her throat. After an eon of waiting or maybe it was just a few seconds, Sirius could no longer tell, she spoke. "There's a wall right behind me," Beth choked out.

It was more invitation than he needed. He dove at her, cupping her face in his hands as he pushed her back against the wall, his lips hard against hers. Beth's arms grasped his shoulders as she clutched him closer. Sirius angled his head to get the best access to her mouth and he felt Beth greedily deepen the kiss. He moaned when he felt her lips part and he thrust his tongue inside. Her mouth was hot and inviting and tasted of peppermint gum. His hands dropped to her sides and slowly moved down her ribcage, past her waist to her hips. He easily lifted her up and she wrapped her legs around him as he held her propped between his body and the wall, his mouth moving against hers.

Sirius had never felt this little control when snogging a girl. He couldn't stop, didn't want to stop ever. One of Beth's hands had moved to his chest and was clumsily unbuttoning his shirt. He drove his tongue into her mouth harder, trying to stifle a groan, when he felt her hand touch his bare chest.

"Beth," he said between kisses as his mouth moved to her neck. "You've been making me crazy." Beth's warm hands moved under his shirt to his back and he pressed his hips into hers. She gasped and Sirius returned his mouth to hers, kissing her with a desperate hunger.

Beth pulled her lips from his mouth and worked her way around his jaw. "You are the most stubborn," (she ran her nails lightly up his back)"hard-headed" (she gasped as he ground his hips against hers again) "idiot. You've been" (one of his hands grasped her hair and his mouth hovered over hers)"torturing me."

Sirius' eyes were fierce. "Fuck, Beth. You've kept me up every night." His mouth dropped on hers again. It felt so good, he felt so good, the normal practical side of Beth's mind was shut off. The tension that had simmered between them had exploded and she couldn't get enough of him. She ran her hands over the sinewy muscles of his back, down to his hips and pulled him harder against her. Sirius groaned again and the hand in her hair moved down to the small of her back. He slipped his fingers up under the back of her shirt, feeling her warm, silky skin as his hand moved up her spine.

"Shit Sirius," a voice from behind them made Sirius freeze. "Is this the way you treat your girls? I would have thought you were taught better."

Beth didn't recognize the voice but apparently Sirius did. He used his body to block her from the wizard's vision, letting her feet drop gently to the floor and wrapping his arms around her head so she couldn't be seen from the sides. She buried her face in his chest, mortified.

"Get the fuck out of here," Sirius' voice was so fierce, it made Beth's blood run cold. It didn't faze the disembodied voice as much because he laughed without mirth before they heard his footsteps walking away. Beth could feel the tense rigidity in Sirius' shoulder and back muscles.

"Who was that?" Beth whispered. She felt shaken not by being caught, but by the animosity between Sirius and the interrupter.

"No one who matters," Sirius bit off, the anger still in his voice. Beth's face was still pressed to his chest and she could feel his heart pounding.

Sirius took a deep breath after a few minutes and looked down at her. "I'm sorry," he said. In contrast to his last words, his voice was now protective, almost tender. "I didn't mean for anyone to see us."

Beth pulled back looking stricken. "You're not ashamed of me, are you?"

He gently touched her cheek with his hand, his face serious. "No, Beth." He took a deep breath. "Let's go somewhere we can talk."

Beth gulped, her eyes scanning his. She nodded, unsure if she could trust her voice. Sirius picked up her backpack and took her hand. He pulled her down the corridor into an empty classroom and shut the door.

"Don't you have a class now?" Beth asked. She was annoyed at how shaky her voice sounded.

"I can miss it," Sirius pulled up a chair for Beth and sat next to her.

Beth folded her hands on her lap and looked down, waiting. When Sirius was silent, she raised her eyes to meet his. He was watching her with a tender expression she'd never seen before. Sirius reached his hand to cover hers. "I've been trying so hard not to let myself get involved with you," he started "for more than one reason."

Beth stared at him. She wasn't at all sure she wanted to know the reasons Sirius didn't want to be with her.

"I've always resisted being in a relationship. I don't know why," he ran his fingers through his hair. "Maybe I have trust issues." He laughed harshly. "That's probably one of the biggest understatements of the year."

Sirius grimaced and Beth's brow furrowed in confusion. "I come from a rotten family. James is more than a best friend to me. He's become my real family. I'm closer to James and his parents than my own family."

Beth felt stunned. Surely Sirius was exaggerating. His relationship with his family couldn't be that bad, could it?

Sirius stood up abruptly and paced a few feet. He sighed and looked at Beth. "I don't want to get into all the bullshit my family stands for right now. Let's just leave it that we're estranged and I don't want to have anything to do with them anymore."

He walked back to sit next to Beth and took her hand. "From the first day I met you, I've been drawn to you. It took me a long time to admit to myself that I wanted more than just to hang out casually with you and snog you." He ran his thumb over her knuckles. "I know I'm a moody prat. I tried to convince myself that I wasn't right for you, that my fucked-up, suspicious nature would drag you down."

Beth shook her head. She brought their joined hands to her lips and kissed his hand. "I don't care about that, Sirius."

Sirius' mouth twisted. "I do. What kind of bloke would I be if I didn't think about what's best for you?"

"You don't get to decide what's best for me," Beth said gently. "I do. Yes, you're moody and too glum sometimes. But you're also caring, loyal, smart and funny."

Sirius ran his fingers up her arm. "I'm a tosser with lots of baggage."

"Who doesn't have baggage?" Beth put her free hand on his thigh and leaned towards him. Sirius' breath caught as her eyes scanned his face slowly. "I don't know exactly what it is about you, but you're the one who makes me laugh, who makes my heart pound, who I yearn to be with." Her lips brushed gently against his and his free hand lifted to cup the back of her head. He let himself sink into the kiss as it deepened and pushed aside, for a few minutes, the other issue he needed to talk to her about.

When the kiss ended, Sirius leaned away before he could forget his good intentions again. "Wait," he said. "There's another reason I felt I couldn't be with you."

Beth looked at him suspiciously. "I'm guessing it has to do with me being a muggle."

"Not because you're a muggle." He stopped and sighed in frustration. "That's not entirely true. It's partially for that reason."

Sirius pulled her into his arms when he saw the expression in her eyes. "It's not like that, Beth." His fingers combed through her hair soothingly. "You were right when you said the wizarding world was dangerous. You're from a different world than I am." He drew back so he could look at her. His eyes were blazing, intense as they bore into hers. "There are witches and wizards out there who are trying to eradicate all muggleborns from the wizarding world. It's becoming a vicious war. It's dangerous for all of us but especially dangerous for muggles who are involved. Even though you're not a witch, you could be putting yourself in danger just by being involved with me."

Beth swallowed. She opened her mouth to speak, but Sirius jumped up again, pacing a few steps away.

"It scares the hell out of me, Beth. I don't want anything bad to ever happen to you. I couldn't live with myself if you were hurt because of me."

"Sirius," Beth said carefully. "Are you sure you're not exaggerating the threat to me? I know there's a terrible war brewing. My uncle and I talked about it before I came here. Voldemort and his followers aren't going to come after me. I'm not even a witch. I don't even register on their scale."

Sirius considered her thoughtfully. "Maybe," he said grudgingly.

"Dumbledore told my uncle I was the safest person at Hogwarts." Beth continued persuasively. "If I was hurt, my uncle would look for retribution. Voldemort will not risk that, especially for just a muggle with no powers."

Sirius mulled over how much to tell her. It was true that Dumbledore would never have let her come if he thought there was any danger to her here at Hogwarts. Beth was right about not even being on Voldemort's radar. It wasn't Voldemort that worried him when it came to Beth.

Voldemort wouldn't bother to hurt Beth but his family might. Any of his dysfunctional psychotic family could decide to use Beth as leverage against him. They hated that he had disgraced them, he was a stain on their twisted pureblood honor. When they knew he was dating a muggle, their fury and outrage would go up exponentially.

His deranged cousin Bellatrix was the biggest threat. She was obsessed with Voldemort and willing to do anything to promote his warped vision. Bellatrix saw Sirius as the ultimate traitor to the Black family honor. She would relish the chance to get revenge. He could not allow her to use Beth as that tool.

Inside Hogwarts, Beth was safe. Dumbledore and her uncle's clout protected her. Even his sick family would not touch her here. He still believed she could be in danger outside of Hogwarts if she was involved with him, but she would go home once they left Hogwarts.

"Look," he said feeling nervous, trying to explain. "It's not really Voldemort that worries me, but my family. Saying they'll be irate when they find out I'm with a muggle is an understatement."

"They won't actually do anything about it, will they?" Beth asked, shock in her voice. "Even if they disapprove?"

Sirius hesitated. "Not while you're at Hogwarts," he admitted. "I just…I don't want to scare you but I don't trust them. I wouldn't put anything past some of them."

Beth nodded. "I'm willing to take that chance," she said staunchly. "I'm sure I'm safe here."

Beth was watching him. He was afraid he'd terrify her if she knew the extent of the craziness that was his family. It was safe to be together here at least. He would explain the rest when the time was right. He met her eyes and nodded. "I guess its okay for now," he said carefully. "While you're here at Hogwarts. The situation could change though. You know that, right?"

"Yes," she told him seriously. "I know that." He took a deep breath, hoping he was doing the right thing. Beth occupied a place in his heart he had thought would always be closed off. He pushed aside the thought that he was being selfish.

He walked back to Beth and pulled her to a standing position. "I never thought I'd be attracted to someone who was so high spirited and fucking positive all the time." He shook his head at her, smiling ruefully. "But there's something about you. I want you in a way I've never wanted anyone before."

His hand gently cupped one cheek and she closed her eyes, leaning her face into his hand. "You're the first girl I've fallen hard for," his hand moved to her chin and he ran his thumb over her lips sensually. "You forced me to reevaluate what I want." Beth opened her eyes to stare at him. "I'm not running away from commitment anymore."

Beth's lips turned up for the first time since they'd come into the classroom. "Really?" She gazed at him with a luminosity that made his breath catch. "I thought you didn't want any strings attached." Her voice was quiet and Sirius understood how painful that had been to her.

Sirius rubbed his thumb along her jaw. "I changed my mind," his voice was gruff. "With you, I want the strings." Beth let her body sag with relief as he gathered her in his arms and held her close.


	13. Owned

Beth woke up excited and filled with energy. She hopped out of bed and showered quickly. She smiled, thinking of Sirius and the hours they'd spent talking (mixed with some heated making out) last night. She felt as though her feet were barely touching the ground. Lily and Linda were still asleep when Marlene clambered out of her bed and staggered into the bathroom (not surprising on a Saturday at –wait, what time was it? Beth was startled to see her watch showed it was only 6:20 in the morning) so Beth left their dorm alone and went down to the Common Room. Once there she stopped, looking around. The room was quiet, empty in the early hour. What should she do? She didn't know how long it would be before Marlene came down and she couldn't sit still, she had to do something.

Beth headed over to the Portrait Hole. She might as well eat breakfast or take a walk. Before pushing it open, she heard a sound from the girls' staircase and turned to see Marlene coming down the stairs, yawning and slightly stumbling. The Portrait Hole opened behind Beth and a pair of arms snaked around her waist, pulling her back against a hard body.

"Good morning," Sirius bent his head to reach her cheek and gave her a quick peck.

Beth smiled and turned in his arms to face him. "Surely you can do better than that," she teased and a smile lit his face. This time, the kiss was neither on the cheek nor remotely a peck. Beth felt her body slump against his as Sirius moved his lips against hers and pulled her closer. Her hands went to the nape of his neck and she responded by parting her lips, sighing in pleasure as Sirius deepened the kiss.

They were interrupted by the sound of a foot stomping. "Oh, hell no," Marlene ejaculated. Beth broke away from Sirius and twisted her head to see Marlene glaring at them. "It is way too early to see this!"

Beth blushed although Sirius just laughed. He waited until Beth turned back to look at him. "We have Quidditch practice this morning. Do you want to come? James will put you to work writing notes on new plays and timing our drills."

"Sure," Beth grinned. It beat sitting around by herself on a Saturday morning. Watching Sirius practice would be a bonus.

"I'll go get my gear and will be down in a minute," Sirius told her, reluctantly letting her go. He left, running up the stairs.

Beth looked at Marlene who was sporting a huge grin. "So, Sirius finally made his move, eh?" She raised her eyebrows at Beth and winked salaciously.

"Um, yeah," Beth felt her face get hot.

Marlene elbowed her. "It's about time. That prat's been edgy and moody the last couple weeks. I could tell he was hot for you after our last Quidditch match. He couldn't keep his hands off you at the party."

Beth smiled. "Were we that obvious?"

Marlene snorted. "Hell yes. Between his grabbing you every chance he got and your wishful little stares, everyone knew it was just a matter of time."

They heard the sound of a door slamming and Sirius raced down the stairs. "Let's drop by the Great Hall and grab something for you to eat" he told Beth taking her hand. He looked at Marlene. "Have you had breakfast, McKinnon?"

Marlene shook her head. "I don't like to eat until after practice. The spins James makes us work on will make me lose my breakfast. I'll see you two at the pitch." She gave a casual wave and stepped out of the Portrait Hole.

Beth discovered she wasn't the only one with excess energy. Sirius pulled her at a full sprint to grab a banana and apple from the Great Hall and stuffed them in his cloak pockets before they ran outside towards the pitch. "Are we late?" Beth asked as they ran, passing Marlene on their way.

"No," Sirius grinned at her with a wicked gleam in his eyes. "I just feel like moving fast today." She discovered why when they reached the pitch and he pulled her under the stands, whirling around to face her once they'd walked several feet. Beth's eyes were still adjusting to the semi-dark when his lips descended on hers. Beth hung on to his shoulders and moaned when he pushed her back against a pillar and pressed hard against her.

"You're an animal," she whispered in his ear when he let her up for air.

Sirius laughed. "You don't know the half of it," He muttered, his breath ragged before leaning in again.

"Sirius, you lech, get your arse out from under the bleachers!" They heard James' voice in the distance. Sirius swore as he pulled away from Beth.

"We'll pick this up later, babe." He gave her one more kiss and they walked out onto the pitch. With a quick wave, Sirius went to the locker room to put on his practice clothes and pads. The rest of the team were warming up, tossing Quaffles and practicing maneuvers. James dropped down to the ground from the air and grabbed Beth's arm.

"Are you willing to write down our times and notes on our plays?" he asked breathlessly.

"Whatever you need," Beth said. James grinned at Beth and took her to the player's bench. He handed her a logbook and timer and explained what he wanted. For the next two hours, Beth diligently recorded times and plays.

At the end of practice, James and Sirius swooped down and landed near Beth. Beth handed James the logbook just as Sirius encased her in his arms, picking her up and swinging her around. When he set her back down, Beth saw James was frowning at her entries.

"What is this?" he asked.

Beth moved to stand by James and looked at him uncertainly. "I made a graph of all of your players, their speed at different distances, their distance throwing, their role in each play and all of the comments you yelled at them to tell them what they need to work on."

James flipped the pages and stared at more diagrams. "And this?" he asked.

"I made several diagrams for each play, the first ones from the side and from above." Beth pointed at the first two. "It's even harder than diagramming muggle sports plays since your flying adds another dimension."

Sirius looked over James' shoulder. Beth shrugged as she pointed to further diagrams. "I'm kind of weird. I like breaking down complex systems into smaller components. Your Quidditch plays have so many variables it was fun working through them." She hesitated. "Will this be helpful to you?"

James mouth slowly split into a smile. "Shit, Beth. This is brilliant. Where have you been all my Quidditch captain life?"

"Try not to drool, Prongs," Sirius told James as he reached around him to pull Beth to his side.

James ignored Sirius and eyed Beth. "Can you help at other practices? This will really help me work out the kinks in our plays and to develop new ones."

Beth smiled. "Sure."

Sirius squeezed Beth's shoulders as they turned back towards the locker room. "You must be hungry. Can you wait a few more minutes while I take a shower?" At Beth's nod, he kissed her temple and strode off.

Beth was left alone when James made a beeline for the locker room. She slowly finished her apple and then walked to a trash can to throw the core away. Another Quidditch team started filing in to practice. A blonde wizard and dark-haired wizard looked at her curiously as they walked past. "That's the muggle exchange student," she heard the blonde wizard tell the other. They did not act very friendly and Beth stepped away, feeling awkward. She went to stand right outside the locker room where Gryffindor players were starting to come out. Sirius stepped out a few minutes later and his face lit up when he saw her.

"Ready for breakfast?" he asked, pulling her close to his side.

"Past ready," Beth said, and then glanced casually back towards the pitch. "Hey, who is the team practicing now?"

Sirius' scowl came back momentarily as he also looked back. None of the players were visible but he spotted a practice uniform that had been tossed on the bench. "The Slytherins. Bunch of prats." He turned back to Beth. "They're the most prejudiced against muggleborns. Luckily, none of them would ever deign to take Muggle Studies so you don't have to teach them."

"We must have a few in Arithmancy, right?" Beth asked. "I don't really know who belongs to what houses outside of Gryffindor."

"There's a few in our class," Sirius said. "They usually steer a wide berth around James and I."

"Why?" Beth asked. They had reached the castle and Sirius opened the heavy door for her.

"Gryffindors and Slytherins have a long history of detesting each other," Sirius replied. "James and I have been in more than our share of scrapes with them. We usually end up proving to them what pansies they are deep down inside so they leave us alone."

Beth slipped her arm around him and ran her fingers lightly up his side. "Do they know you're ticklish?" she asked as he squirmed. "They could use that to their advantage in your little scrapes."

Sirius laughed and swung her around the corner to a deserted corridor. "You're asking for it," he said as his strong fingers went to work tickling her. He soon had Beth laughing so hard she was too weak to retaliate as his hands quickly moved around her torso.

"Okay, I give up," Beth wheezed, collapsing against his hands.

"Good," Sirius' hands spanned her ribcage and he hauled her up against him. "We can practice making out for my prize."

Beth beamed up at him. "You remembered my slang," she said still a little breathless from laughing. His lips lowered to hers and his hands slipped around to her back and down to her waistband, searching for access to her skin. She made an inarticulate sound against his lips when his warm hands found their way under her shirt and up her back. Sirius pressed closer, his tongue as busy as his hands. Beth forgot they were just a few feet from the busy Entrance Hall as desire made her knees go weak. Sirius felt her body buckle and gathered her up closer, supporting her weight effortlessly. The sound of laughter as a group of witches walked close to their corner drove them apart and Beth stumbled slightly as she stepped away from him. Sirius grabbed her arm to steady her.

They stared at each other, breathing rapidly. "Maybe we'd better go eat," Beth suggested when Sirius didn't speak.

He nodded and reached out to put his arm around her shoulders again. "You make me forget myself, Beth. You take advantage of me." He gave her a suggestive wink.

Beth choked. "Me? That's rich. I'm pretty sure it's been you who has been pawing at me."

Sirius put his mouth close to her ear. "We've barely scratched the surface of pawing." Beth elbowed his ribs as they walked to the Great Hall. Lily and Marlene were sitting at the Gryffindor table, chatting and eating. Beth lunged for a seat and happily piled her plate with toast and eggs.

"You were up early today," Lily observed to Beth.

Beth swallowed her mouthful of eggs. "I, uh, couldn't sleep."

James arrived, his hair still wet and his glasses askew. He dropped down beside Lily and kissed her. Lily straightened his glasses and smiled at him. "Good practice?"

James nodded. "Beth did a great job taking notes. And Sirius practices harder to show off when she's there so that motivates the others to keep up."

"I don't show off," Sirius argued. He looked disgruntled and Beth hid her smile by taking another bite of her toast.

Marlene didn't bother to hide hers. "I never thought I'd see Sirius Black smitten. It gives me hope there's some justice in the world."

"What? Why?" Sirius stared at her.

"How many times have you teased your friends when they've fallen for someone, hmm Black?" Marlene pointed her finger at him. "If you think I'm going to miss this opportunity for some payback after all these years, you're crazy."

Sirius turned to look at Beth at his side, who was studying her plate carefully, her lips tightly pressed together. "Do you see what I have to put up with?" He asked her pointedly. "I hope you realize how much I am willing to go through for you."

Beth gave up all pretense of casualness and broke out laughing. "I do and I really appreciate it," she told him with an exultant gleam in her eyes. Sirius couldn't help but grin back at her.

Marlene coughed, a noise escaping from her mouth that sounded suspiciously like "owned". James snickered and Sirius threw an apple at James' head, which James caught grinning. "I've been called 'whipped' more than a few times by you, Padfoot. I see Marlene's point."

Lily nodded. "I remember you slamming me a few times too, Sirius. We want to make sure you can take it as well as dish it out."

Sirius turned to Beth and explained about how he was surrounded by traitorous gits who preferred acting like arseholes rather than best mates causing James to roll his eyes and Marlene to snort derisively. Beth put her hand on his knee under the table and squeezed. "I'll try and make it up to you later," she whispered to him and Sirius raised his eyebrows at her.

"I take back the traitorous comments," he told Marlene, James and Lily. "Give me your best shots."

Marlene gave him a dubious look. "What brought this need for punishment on?"

"None of your business, McKinnon." Sirius winked at Beth.


	14. The Picture

The following weekend, Sirius turned to James with a grin as they sauntered down the boys' staircase to the Common Room. "What's our plan for Hogsmeade today, Prongs? Beth wants to get chocolate at Honeydukes but says she doesn't care where else we go."

"Lily needs a new notebook and she wants a frame for a picture Beth took of us," James said. "Besides that, I'm open for anything." He gave Sirius a deceptively mild glance. "Did you ever find out why Beth carries that picture of her boyfriend around with her?"

"No," Sirius said shortly. He didn't meet James' eyes as he fiddled with his collar, feeling unsettled. "I haven't asked her that. All I know is the prat cheated."

"Is that why Beth cries herself to sleep?" Peter asked from behind them. "Because her boyfriend cheated on her?" He and Remus had come down the stairs without Sirius and James hearing them.

Sirius frowned. "She cries herself to sleep?" He looked at Peter and then James. "How do you know that?"

James' face turned hard. "You're a fucking idiot, Wormtail."

Peter's eyes widened. "Was that a secret?" His head whipped between the other Marauders. "Sorry, Prongs."

"How did you know?" James was still glaring at Peter.

"I overheard you and Lily the other day," Peter gulped. "I didn't know Sirius didn't know. You usually tell him everything."

Sirius clenched his fists agitatedly. "Why the hell would she do that? That bloke was a prick. She shouldn't be keen on him anymore."

There was a long silence. "It could still hurt being betrayed," Remus said carefully, "even if she doesn't care about him now."

Sirius looked troubled, his eyes shifting to each of his friends in turn. "Shit, do you think she's still holding a torch for the cheating wanker?"

"James," the four Marauders heard Lily's voice call. They turned towards the girls' staircase where Lily was descending. "Beth's just changing her shoes. She'll be down in a minute." James looked at Sirius, eyebrows raised in a silent question and Sirius nodded.

James and Sirius hurried over to the bottom of the girls' staircase. "Hey," James kissed Lily. "Let's meet Sirius and Beth at Hogsmeade later. Sirius wants to talk to Beth."

Lily's eyes flicked to Sirius. Her face became worried when she saw his expression but she nodded. "Sure. See you later, Sirius." Lily and James left, Lily casting one last look at Sirius over her shoulder.

Remus and Peter walked over to Sirius. "Do you want the room?" Remus asked. "We can clear out for a few hours."

"Yeah, thanks," Sirius nodded. Beth appeared on her way down the stairs, smiling when she saw them. Remus and Peter silently left before she made it to the bottom.

"Where are Lily and James?" Beth asked. Her eyes searched Sirius' face and anxiety clouded her expression when she saw his. "What's going on, Sirius?"

"I want to talk to you," Sirius said. He knew he needed to do this now. Patience was not one of his strong suits. "Can we go up to my room?"

Beth nodded, confused, and they made their way to the Marauders dorm room. Sirius guided Beth to his bed and swept his clothes out of the way to clear a space for her. He sat next to her. "I'm not good at this kind of shite," he told her when the silence grew and she continued to frown anxiously at him.

"What kind of shite?" Beth asked warily. She hadn't been up to his room before and normally she would be curiously checking around, but his behavior was making her nervous and she kept her eyes on him.

"Emotional stuff," Sirius clarified. Beth looked more puzzled and he decided to just spill it. "Beth, are you still hung up on your ex-boyfriend?"

Beth shook her head. "I don't care about him anymore. I haven't for a long time."

"Then why do you cry yourself to sleep at night? Why do you still carry that picture of him around?" Sirius asked. Despite his efforts to sound unperturbed, his voice had an edge that he was unable to cover up.

Beth's mouth dropped open and she stared at him. "How do you know I cry at night?"

"Lily told James and Peter eavesdropped and let it slip to me." Sirius braced himself to ask the hardest question. He searched her eyes intently as he asked her. "Do you still love him?"

"No," Beth's eyes filled with tears. She gulped and looked down, fighting for composure. Tears threatened to push their way out past the half-crescent shapes of her dark eyelashes. Her lips were pressed tightly together and she swallowed as if there were a Quaffle lodged in her throat.

Sirius watched her, baffled. "Beth?" he finally broke the silence. "Just tell me. I'll be alright even if you still care about that arsehole."

"I don't carry that picture around because of him." Beth finally looked up at Sirius. "It's because of Diane, my best friend." The tears spilled down her cheeks and her shoulders shook. "I've been meaning to tell you, b-but it's still hard to t-talk about."

Sirius put his arms around her and held her close. She was trembling and her hand clutched at his shirt convulsively over his chest. After a few minutes she took a shuddering breath. "She… k-killed herself last summer." She broke down sobbing and Sirius tightened his arms and held her against him. He could feel her entire body shaking as the hot tears made their way down her cheeks and were then absorbed by his shirt. His mind raced as she sobbed. Relief that she wasn't wallowing over her ex-boyfriend was laced with guilt that he hadn't even known she was so upset. How had he not been able to see that she was in this kind of pain? He ran his hand down her hair and across her shoulders over and over, feeling the tense muscles in her back.

Beth's sobs eventually subsided. She sat quietly, shoulders still quaking. Her hands had moved around him to his back and he felt them gripping his shirt in a deathly vise. Sirius kissed her hair and stroked up and down her spine. He wished he could take away her pain. He felt a strange helplessness and with that, frustration.

She was able to continue after several minutes. "We were so close. Like you and James. At least I thought we were that close. But she didn't tell me how much pain she was in. And I…I must not have been a very good friend because I couldn't tell." She wiped her face with a tissue Sirius had summoned. "I miss her and that hurts, but it also hurts that I wasn't there for her. I wasn't able to help her."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Sirius asked. He felt his muscles tense as he waited for her to answer.

"I didn't want you to think of me that way at first," Beth sighed. "With pity or as the girl who didn't know her best friend was that miserable. I wanted you to get to know me without my emotional baggage."

"Oh Beth," Sirius kissed her temple and rocked her in his arms. "Sometimes people hide their feelings when they're hurting. It's not your fault she couldn't confide in you."

"I don't know," Beth said remorsefully. "I should have noticed."

Her words hit Sirius hard. "How could I not have sensed this?" Sirius looked stricken. "You're a bloody open book, Beth. I couldn't even tell you were hurting."

Beth tried to smile sadly at him with trembling lips. "Look, you were right about me. I am naturally a Pollyanna, overly optimistic and upbeat. Its true Diane's suicide changed me. I'll always miss her and I'll always wish I had done more to help her." She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. "But with you, I felt better about myself. Maybe it's because I sensed you've had issues in your life. You made no bones about being a dark horse. Or maybe it was because I was attracted to you so quickly and grew to care about you." Beth reached out and took his hand. "I meant to tell you. I was waiting for the right time. But we just got together and I've been so happy, I just pushed it to the back of my mind."

Sirius brought his lips to her forehead. "Tell me about her," he breathed against her smooth skin. He moved back to lean against the headboard and pulled Beth up to lie curled against his chest.

For the next hour, Beth did. The words came hesitantly at first, and then built speed until they were pouring out of her, painting pictures in Sirius' mind. She told him how they met in first grade ("I was just watching everyone else play at recess, too scared to join in and she asked me to swing with her"), their giggling stalking of Diane's first crush ("poor guy, every time he turned around we were there"), the night they cried themselves to sleep together when Diane's father left her mother ("he moved away a year later and she didn't get to see him often"), their swim team escapades ("we talked the new girls each season into playing pranks on each other to get them to feel part of the team"), their water polo partnership ("they called us the dynamic duo because we could read each other so well we always knew how to set the other up when driving for a goal") to Diane's comforting Beth after her break-up with Andy ("she managed to make me to feel I was lucky to be rid of him").

"She was kind, sensitive and funny. She acted very poised and together. I was one of her few friends who knew she battled depression. But she seemed great the last several weeks, even happier than usual. " Beth twisted her fingers together. "Her mom told me Diane had stopped taking her anti-depressants a few weeks before she killed herself." She swallowed and her hands trembled. Sirius covered her hands with one of his. "She didn't tell anyone, they figured it out by checking the number of pills left from her latest prescription."

When she finished, Beth slumped against him, looking pale and drained. Her tears had stopped and her facial muscles relaxed as she closed her eyes against his chest. Sirius continued to rub Beth's back. "I know how anguished I would feel if anything ever happened to James," he said quietly.

Beth opened her eyes and looked gratefully at him. "Yes," she said simply.

She was silent for a few minutes. "That's why I came here. Last semester was so hard. I had good friends who were there for me and I healed a lot. But I needed to get away for awhile, to go somewhere where no one knew and felt sorry for me." She took a calming breath. "I already have enough credits to graduate from high school, so I have a free semester.

"I've always had an obsession with the wizarding world. Uncle John and I are close. I looked up to him when I was growing up and I loved his wizard stories. Uncle John was really worried about how Diane's suicide affected me. Uncle John did something big—I don't know what-for Dumbledore years ago. He called in his favor for me. He knew this would be a huge change for me—getting to live with witches and wizards in a foreign country far away from home. It feels like a different world here. That's the real reason why Dumbledore let me come. He doesn't need goodwill to help him get support from the U.S. Department of Magic. That was just a cover story to protect me."

Sirius smoothed back her hair. "I'm sorry, Beth."

"Every night when I go to bed, I think of Diane and how I'd love to be able to tell her all that I'm experiencing." Her lips twisted ruefully. "I'm having a great time here but I miss her."

"That's natural," Sirius said.

Beth reached up to touch his cheek. "Thank you for being here with me." Her eyes were still bright with tears but the corner of her lips angled up as she gazed at him.

"I wouldn't want to be with anyone else," he told her honestly. He studied her tired delicate face, her sad eyes that nevertheless shone with a look of relief now that she wasn't hiding this anymore. He ran his thumb down her cheekbone and along her jaw before threading his hand through her hair.

"Sirius?" Beth wrapped her arms tightly around him and clung to him, pressing her face against his chest. "For the record, you did really well with this emotional shite."


	15. Valentines dinner

"Are you telling me that _Sirius_ has planned a dinner for you for Valentines' Day?" Lily's eyes met Beth's in the mirror, agog with wonder. "He already bought you a present."

"That's what he said," Beth grinned at Lily's reflection as she fastened a clip to pull back one side of her hair. "Why is that so shocking?"

Lily shook her head. "I just never thought of him as the romantic type. Although to be fair, he's never had a steady girlfriend before."

"Didn't he go on dates?" Beth asked curiously. She didn't want to come across as prying, but she was anxious to know more about Sirius' past history. She knew he'd had relationships with other girls. She just didn't know what that entailed. From what Sirius had casually dropped, she suspected his relationships in the past had been more physical than emotional.

"Yeah, but just casual ones," Lily waved her hand disparagingly. "Like taking a girl to Hogsmeade and having a butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks."

"What are you and James doing for Valentines' Day?" Beth asked. She didn't want to pump Lily for information about Sirius, but relief that he hadn't been in a serious relationship in the past swept through her. She opened her drawer to pull out a pair of nylons and sat on the edge of her bed to pull them on.

"James wants to wait until this weekend so we can go to London. He really wants to see what going on a muggle date is like. We're going to go on the tube, eat at a nice restaurant and see a movie as if we cannot do magic." Lily smiled, her eyes alight with excitement. "We got permission to visit my parents so we can leave Hogwarts openly without sneaking out under James' invisibility cloak."

Beth smiled at the thought of James' invisibility cloak. Naturally, Sirius had chosen to stage a demonstration to show it to Beth for the first time. After literally disappearing in front of her eyes when he'd thrown the cloak over his body, he'd been surprised when Beth screamed and then ran full steam into him knocking him to the ground. There had been a fair amount of confusion and shuffling to get the cloak off before they both burst out laughing; Beth in relief that Sirius was really still there and Sirius that her first instinct had been to race to the spot he'd disappeared from. "I didn't expect to get tackled," he had told her, still snickering as they lay on the floor in a tangle of arms, legs and the cloak. "You deserved it, trying to scare me like that," Beth retorted. Sirius had chosen to end that discussion by throwing the cloak over both of them and using the cloak's privacy (although they were in Sirius' empty dorm, Sirius told Beth one of his prat roommates was bound to come in soon) to enthusiastically snog.

"What movie are you going to see?" Beth asked Lily. She'd suggested to Sirius they go on a muggle date in the future, but Sirius had seemed uneasy about the idea so Beth had dropped it.

"'Rocky'. Do you think James will like it?"

"He'll love it." Beth stepped into her heels and stood up. She walked back to the dresser and put on a pair of small gold pierced earrings.

Lily smiled smugly. "James is very proud of himself, you know. He helped Sirius pick those out for you."

"Tell him how much I love them," Beth turned her head to inspect the earrings in the mirror. "How do I look?" She stepped away from the dresser and spun around for Lily.

Lily clapped her hands together. "Beautiful. Sirius' mouth is going to fall open when he sees you in that dress."

Beth smoothed the blue silky material over her hips. "It's not too revealing, is it?"

Lily laughed. "If you were going to church or have dinner with your parents, yes. For a hot Valentine's date, it's perfect."

Beth smiled. "I've never worn it before. Diane helped me pick it out. I would never have had the guts to buy a dress this low-cut by myself. She convinced me it was perfect to cheer me up when my boyfriend cheated on me."

Lily put her arm around Beth and hugged her. Beth had told Lily about Diane after her long talk with Sirius and their discussion had gone on for hours late into the night. Now Beth enjoyed bringing up Diane and she was more open with Lily. When Lily had heard Beth crying one night, she had slipped into bed with her and held Beth until she fell asleep.

Beth glanced at the clock on her bedside table. "I guess I should go." She turned to Lily, looking more than a little nervous. "Wish me luck?" As close as Beth felt to Sirius, they hadn't gone on an official date yet. First dates always gave her jitters and this one felt more important than any had before.

Lily gave her a reassuring smile. "You don't need it. Sirius will take good care of you."

Beth walked down the stairs from the girls' dorm slowly, careful in her high heels. She rarely wore heels but loved how dressy they made her feel on the rare occasions when she did. When she reached the Common Room, she saw Sirius standing near a window, his hands fisted in his pockets, looking out. He heard her heels clinking on the floor and turned around.

"Wow," Lily would have been impressed to see Sirius' mouth literally did drop open. Beth's blue dress draped her figure flatteringly, managing to be both elegant and sexy. "You look amazing, Beth." He came across the room and stared down at her, his eyes eager. "You're so beautiful."

"You don't look too shabby yourself," Beth told him, her heart speeding up. He was wearing dress pants and a light blue button-down shirt and looked even handsomer than normal.

Sirius put his hand on the small of her back. Beth turned to look at him, a wide smile lighting up her face. "Where are we going?" Beth asked as they stepped out of the Portrait Hole.

"Somewhere discreetly private," Sirius promised. He led her down a few flights to another corridor she did not remember. Despite living here over a month there were many parts of the castle Beth was not familiar with. "Wait here," he placed her near a solid wall and then he paced in front of it. A beautiful carved oak door materialized in the wall and Beth gasped.

"What just happened?" She asked as Sirius beckoned her over and pulled open the door for her.

"It's called the Room of Requirement," Sirius said. They entered a room lit only with candles. A small white-covered table stood in the middle of the room, set for two. A rose and candles adorned the center of the table. A large comfortable couch sat a short distance away, candles in beautiful crystal holders arranged on the small table next to it. "It creates a room to fit your needs."

"This is incredible," Beth said, awed. Sirius pulled out a chair for her at the table and she sat down. They heard a noise and when Beth turned her head, a serving cart had materialized behind her with covered platters on it. Sirius wheeled the cart close to the table before sitting down. "How did that get here?" Beth asked.

"House elves can be bribed." Sirius lifted the cover from the first platter which contained a steaming pasta and chicken dish. Sirius filled her plate and his own while Beth sliced a fresh loaf of bread for both of them. Sirius gulped when she leaned across the table to reach the butter. He was determined to be a gentleman for this date, but Beth in that dress was making it difficult.

Beth cast about in her mind for something to break the ice. "So, what do you want to do once you leave Hogwarts?" she spoke rather abruptly as she dug into her salad.

Sirius grinned at her, seemingly understanding her nerves. "Most likely I'll be fighting in the wizard war," he said. He sounded as casual as if he had said he was going to become an accountant.

"Really?" Beth's heart started beating in overtime, her fork stopped halfway to her mouth. "Is it that bad already?"

"Yes," Sirius said. "James, Remus, Peter and I have been talking about this. We're going to do whatever it takes to fight Voldemort and his Death-Eater minions of arseholes."

"That's awful," Beth gulped. When he raised an eyebrow at her, she elaborated. "To finish school and have to jump right into a war."

"I look forward to actually being in action," Sirius replied. "I hate sitting around behind the scenes feeling helpless." He didn't tell her that currently the only action he could think of involved his hands and lips all over Beth. He swallowed and tried to push those images from his mind.

"But it's dangerous, right?" Beth asked her voice hesitant. "You could be hurt or even killed."

Sirius gave her a cocky grin. "I'll be alright. I can look out for myself."

"You'll be careful, won't you?" Beth reached across to put a hand on his arm.

Sirius nodded when he saw the anxious look in her eyes. "Of course I will," he said to reassure her, although being careful wasn't really his style. Surprisingly, he was finding that when it came to Beth he had more of an inclination to be protective than he ever would have imagined. He picked up a piece of bread and buttered it. "What about you? What are you doing after leaving Hogwarts?"

"Next fall, I'll start college," Beth took a bite of the pasta. She made a moan of appreciation in her throat when she tasted it. Sirius' hands froze with his piece of bread halfway to his mouth as he gaped at her. She swallowed and continued not noticing how that had affected him. "This summer, I'm planning to travel around Europe since I'm overseas."

"What are you interested in studying?" Sirius had heard of muggles going to university after their regular school. He tried not to stare at Beth's slim fingers as she picked up her glass and took a drink.

"Computer science," Beth answered.

Beth had explained how computers worked in one of their muggle studies class to the bemusement of the witches and wizards. "What do you want to do with computers?" Sirius asked. He understood the concept of how computers worked but had no idea what people did with them.

Beth pursed her lips. "Probably become a programmer at first." He gave her a questioning look. "The people who write the code that tells the computer what to do," she elaborated. She spent a few minutes explaining in more detail how programmers worked with computers. "After getting some practical experience, I want to go to grad school and eventually teach."

"You're brilliant and you work your arse off," Sirius told her sincerely with no flattery intended. "You'll rise to the top no matter what you do." The thin strap of Beth's dress on her right shoulder had fallen down her arm a couple centimeters and his knuckles turned white on his fork as he forced himself not to reach over to fix it.

Beth blushed. "Uh, thanks." Her lips angled up as she met his warm gaze. "What about you? What would you like to do once the war is over?"

"Be an Auror in the Ministry of Magic," Sirius said. "It's tough to get in. I have to do well on my N.E.W.T.s to even qualify and then I'll have to go through three years of training." Sirius told Beth what taking their N.E.W.T.s entailed and that he would be studying much more than he liked this spring to prepare for them. When he listed the many qualifications witches and wizards needed to become an Auror, Beth understood how elite the position was.

"What do Aurors do once they've gone through all that training?" Beth asked.

"They investigate the most dangerous crimes and cover the toughest missions," Sirius said. Not touching Beth felt like the toughest mission he could envision as he watched her absently run her fingers under the strap of her dress to tug it into place. He forced his attention back to her face and told her about several recent Auror cases that were known outside of the Ministry. "Most of what they do is top secret," he said. "But of course there are leaks."

"You like being in the thick of the action, don't you?" She smiled at him and Sirius nodded although his mind was centered on a different type of action than Aurors were trained for. Her eyes were sparkling in the candlelight and he stared intently at her without realizing it until he noticed she looked a little self-conscious. He reached across the table to gently touch her hair where it curled against her collarbone. Beth's breath caught and she set down her fork blindly. It clattered as it hit the edge of her plate and she jumped.

"Are you done eating?" Sirius asked and Beth nodded mutely. He stood up and came around the table to pull her up next to him. Sirius' hands slowly went around her waist to her back and tugged her closer to him. "It's been difficult not to touch you in that dress," he told her huskily. His warm hands continued to roam her back ever so slowly and then worked their way up to cup her smooth shoulders, bare but for those miniscule straps. His eyes blazed at hers and Beth felt heat pooling in her stomach.

Sirius abruptly removed his hands from her shoulders with an inner pang of regret. He could do this. He took her hand and motioned towards the couch. "Would you like to sit down?" Beth looked a little confused as he cautiously walked her over and sat several inches away from her.

"Sirius?" Beth said when he didn't put his arm around her or sit any closer. "Is something wrong?" She indicated the six inches of couch between them. "We don't usually have this kind of distance between us."

Sirius groaned. "I've been attempting to make this the perfect Valentines' date for you," he put his face in his hands. "I'm trying to be a gentleman and not just let this night devolve into a songfest. You're making it really hard."

Beth bit her lip, struggling not to laugh. "Devolve? It's not a negative thing to snog, is it?"

"Of course not," Sirius turned to look at her, unable to stop his lips from quirking at her amused face. "On a proper date, snogging comes at the end part."

"Where did you come up with this formula of a proper date?" Beth was finding it increasingly difficult to hide the amusement bubbling up inside her. She could see from Sirius' expression she was not fooling him one bit.

"Remus, Peter and I talked about it." Sirius admitted. "They helped me plan this date." He could not help noticing how the neckline of Beth's dress gaped at this angle showing more smooth skin. He clenched his hands into fists.

Beth scooted over closer to him. The candlelight lit one side of her smooth cheek while the other side of her face was shadowed. "And what did you three decide was the proper point for the end part?"

Sirius' eyes gleamed as he watched her. "We didn't actually define it. I just figured it wouldn't be this soon."

Beth leaned against his side. Her hand reached over and gently unfurled one of his fists. "So you have to torture yourself before the end part?"

Sirius nodded, his eyes glued to hers. Her warm body pressed up against his arm was making his heart speed up.

"What if we expand how long the end part lasts?" Her hand slipped under his to rest on this thigh.

Sirius could not stop the smile that was spreading over his face. "Well, if the lady wants the end part to be longer, the gentleman would have to comply."

Beth nodded. "If the end part is longer, it would have to start sooner on this proper date." Her lips moved close to his ear. "Maybe even as soon as now?"

Sirius forced himself to hold on to his control for a few moments longer. He cupped his hand under Beth's jaw and lowered his face closer to hers. "Is that what the lady wants?"

"Ye—," Beth's mouth was covered with his before the word was out. Sirius' arms wrapped around her pulling Beth tightly against him. Sirius lips were hot and hard against hers and she moaned when he pushed her on her back and pressed his body on top of her.

Sirius' hands came up to cup her face as his mouth devoured hers. Beth slid her arms around his shoulders and slowly lifted one hand to sift through his soft hair. Her other hand slid down the strong muscles of his shoulders and down his back. Sirius let his hands drop to her shoulders and inched deliberately along her sides to her ribcage.

Beth had never fully appreciated before how dexterous his hands were. They seemed to be everywhere even as his lips continued their heated pressure on hers. Even with lines blurring pleasantly in her mind, her attention focused on Sirius' wandering hands and hot mouth, she grasped after some time he was sticking to some predetermined boundaries. Sirius was watching out for her and it made her melt inside in a different way when she realized the restraint he was showing.

Much later, she appreciated it even more when she discovered how difficult it was for him. His mouth was moving hungrily against hers when he tore his lips away with an oath and dropped his face onto the curved slope of her shoulder, his breath hot and ragged against her skin. Beth touched the back of his head, confused. "Sirius?" she whispered and he raised his head to look at her.

His eyes were shadowed deep pools in the candlelight and she could not read their expression. "Beth," his voice was raspy and harsh. "If we don't stop now, I may not be able to."

"Oh," Beth stared at him. Sirius kissed her forehead and rolled over onto his back bringing her with him to nestle against him. Their breathing slowly became more even. Beth's head was comfortably cushioned on Sirius' shoulder and she kept her hand still on his bare chest, not quite sure how his shirt had become unbuttoned.

"It's tough keeping control with you," Sirius' voice sounded normal again. He moved his hand down to cup her hip, following the curved contours as he moved up to her waist and back down.

Beth wasn't sure what to say. She appreciated the chivalrous respect, but one part of her was ready to throw caution away. The heat of the moment was not the best time to make that decision and she was grateful Sirius was not pushing her.

"This has been a wonderful proper date," she finally said, her voice husky. "Thank you, Sirius."

Sirius chuckled as he kissed the top of her head. "We haven't even had dessert yet."

Beth's head popped up. "There's dessert?"

Sirius laughed at the eagerness of her voice. "Worked up an appetite, did you? Rumor has it that there's chocolate involved."

Beth put a hand over her heart. "Sirius Black, you _do_ know how to make a girl feel special," she propped herself up on his chest so she could grin at him and Sirius laughed.


	16. You can pick your friends but

Sirius took Beth's hand as they left the Common Room. "What's on the agenda for today, teacher?" he asked her.

"We're going to work on getting you to turn your head to the _side_ when you breathe during crawl stroke," Beth replied.

"Where the fuck do you think I turn my head?" Sirius asked belligerently.

"You turn it quite a bit further than you need to. It slows down your timing and you'll eventually hurt your neck when you're swimming longer distances," Beth said. She braced herself for his response knowing from experience he'd be annoyed. Sirius was a natural athlete and he was used to doing well at everything he did. He was frustrated he hadn't progressed faster not realizing how quickly he was learning.

"Bloody hell," Sirius fumed. "I don't know how you expect me to not swallow water if I barely turn my head."

"It just takes practice," Beth reminded him, trying not to laugh. "You've come a long way since we started."

Sirius didn't respond but Beth eyed him furtively and could see he was mollified. They chatted easily as they descended the marble staircase and turned towards the back door. Lily and James waved them down before they left the Great Hall.

"Lesson time?" James asked. Sirius nodded.

"How are Sirius' swimming lessons going, Beth?" Lily asked.

"Really well. He's shown a lot of improvement." Beth slipped an arm around Sirius' waist and grinned at him. "Although I'm mauled more in our lessons than I was playing water polo."

"Sometimes I get a little nervous that I'll sink," Sirius told her with a straight face. "I have to grab on to you to stay afloat."

Beth rolled her eyes. "Most of the time you grab me when we're standing in the shallow end of the pond."

Sirius just grinned at her. "You know I wouldn't even bother taking these lessons if you weren't teaching them, right?"

"These lessons are important," Beth lectured him. "Someday you may need to swim a long distance. You'll use less energy to swim and be able to go a lot further the better the swimmer you are."

"Yes ma'am," Sirius said mockingly.

James shook his head. "You have our sympathy, Beth, for putting up with him." Sirius gave James a playful shove that landed James against the wall a few feet behind him and then ushered Beth out the door quickly before James could retaliate.

"I'll catch up with you later, Padfoot," James called, a promise in his voice as the door swung shut behind them.

The lesson went by quickly. Sirius made progress on his side breathing and swam slow laps while Beth completed her work out. During their play time towards the end Beth showed him ways that water polo players stopped other players from moving underwater. "These moves are against the rules," Beth explained. "But the refs can only see so much from the deck of the pool and everyone does them. That's why girls wear high-necked swimsuits that are super tight. It gives opponents less to grip."

"Is there any _co-ed_ water polo?" Sirius practically leered. He looked forward to this part of their lessons and learning water polo moves was no exception.

"No, for good reason," Beth laughed. "But sometimes we practiced with guys for fun."

The thought of other blokes groping at Beth in the pool shook Sirius. He knew now how physical water polo was. He frowned, feeling a stab of jealousy. Beth read his expression and slung her arms around his neck. "Hey, that's in the past. I'm here now."

Sirius hauled her closer to him. His lips met hers and for several seconds he was able to tread enough with his legs to keep his head above the water. That didn't last, and they broke apart laughing when they had sunk so much that the water was up past their mouths.

They swam to shallower water and Sirius launched himself at Beth. He pulled her up against him in the waist-high water, the inside of his hot mouth contrasting with the cool water droplets on their lips. Beth used the water's buoyancy to crawl up his body and wrapped herself tightly around him. The air was chilly but where their bodies clung together was heated. Sirius' hands moved down her back, his hands warm on her exposed skin. "Shit, Beth," he murmured, his lips moving hungrily against hers. Beth squirmed against him and her hands had slid up to the nape of his neck to press him closer when they heard voices coming towards them. Sirius fell backwards as their lips broke apart and they splashed into the water, giving them time to come up a few feet apart from each other.

Whoever the voices belonged to turned a different direction to walk past the pond. Beth and Sirius grinned conspiratorially at each other as they left the pond, hurrying to their towels and clothes.

"Another invigorating lesson," Sirius said casually.

Beth wasn't duped by his tone. She smiled as she slipped her feet into sandals. Sirius grabbed their bags and they walked towards the castle. He put his arm around her and kissed the top of her head, looking down at her with a gleam in his eye. "Seriously, babe, thanks for putting up with me. I know I'm not the easiest git to teach."

Beth shook her head. "You're actually much easier to teach than you realize. I've taught kids to swim before and they aren't anywhere near as coordinated or as strong as you are. You're becoming a good swimmer quickly."

"Flattery will get you-"

"Posters of muggle girls in your room wasn't enough for you, was it Sirius?" A scornful voice spoke, interrupting Sirius. A dark-haired wizard approached them from the other side of the pond and they turned towards him in surprise, not having noticed him. "You just had to go get the real thing."

Beth recognized him as the Slytherin wizard she had seen at her first Quidditch practice. Sirius' arm had turned wooden and she felt tension radiating from him.

"Fuck off," Sirius' voice was cold, but Beth could sense a heated emotion under a thin veneer of indifference. Her head whipped between their expressions, Sirius' hard and the other wizard's derisive.

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your girlfriend, big brother?" The wizard sneered. Beth froze. Her eyes flicked to Sirius whose face had darkened. Brother? Sirius had a brother at Hogwarts and hadn't told her? "Mum would be mortified at your manners," the wizard continued. Beth's stomach sank as she now recognized this as the voice that had interrupted them kissing the first time in the corridor. She stared at the wizard with wide frightened eyes, her mind reeling with this new knowledge.

Sirius didn't speak, just glowered at his brother. "You just had to find the ultimate way to humiliate mum, didn't you?" the wizard continued caustically. Beth flinched drawing the wizard's attention to her. Sirius' arm tightened around her shoulders and Beth unconsciously clung closer to him. When Sirius did not respond, the wizard shot a final strange look at Beth and then walked away.

Sirius pulled Beth into the castle, moving so fast she stumbled to keep up with him. Once inside, he dragged her to one of the corridors on the first floor, deserted on a Saturday afternoon. He was breathing rapidly and he stopped and dropped his arm from around her shoulders, his other arm still automatically holding their bags.

The wizard's words reverberated in Beth's head. Her chest hurt as she struggled to calm her breathing. Sirius faced away from her, his shoulders heaving with fury.

She broke the silence first, her voice hoarse. "Your brother is here Hogwarts." Not a question, but the statement was filled with questions.

Sirius finally turned around. "Yes. That was my brother Regulus." He heard her unspoken questions, but hesitated, not knowing how to explain, still battling his own anger and fear at Regulus' words. "I told you, I'm estranged from my family. Reg and I normally try to avoid each other."

Beth waited but Sirius didn't say anything else. She needed more, but he stood there, jaw clenched, his face still stony, not speaking. She turned away in frustration and started walking down the corridor and Sirius fell in step next to her.

They walked several minutes without talking. At first Sirius was relieved Beth wasn't questioning him, but as the minutes passed he became worried. There was something ominous in her manner as he tried to figure out how to tell her about his fucked up family. Sirius didn't frighten easy, but this silent closed-off Beth scared him. She walked by his side, stoically staring straight ahead but he felt her retreating from him. He wasn't sure how to close the distance between them.

Sirius finally couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed her arm and pulled her to a bench set in an alcove. "It's not like that, Beth."

Beth's face was set. "Like what?"

"I'm not with you to piss off my family." Sirius tried to unclench his jaw.

"Are you sure? You never even mentioned your brother was here at Hogwarts." Beth replied. Her voice was shaky. Sirius could see the hurt blossoming in her eyes.

"It's not why you think," Sirius gulped. "I care about you. I don't care that you're not a witch, but my family would."

Beth looked away. Her shoulders slumped. "Then why?" Her voice sounded near tears. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I told you I don't care what my family thinks," Sirius gritted his teeth. "I didn't mean to shut you out about my brother being here. We treat each other like strangers. He doesn't matter to me."

Beth stared at him. "He's your brother," she said, her voice shaky. "Even if you don't like each other, he'll always matter to you. Maybe not entirely in a good way, but in other ways. You should have told me about him."

Sirius drew a shaky breath. "You're right," he conceded finally. "I should have told you about him." He sat down next to her on the bench after dropping their bags on the floor, struggling to find the right words. "We were close once. He followed me around, looked up to me, normal brother stuff." His eyes were far away. "But I don't regret running away from home."

He looked at Beth and was relieved to see the shuttered look had left her face. Her eyes still looked wounded and he leaned towards her and cupped his hand around the back of her head. "I've tried to separate my family from my life here. I don't think about the way my brother and I used to be. He's a sodding stranger to me now." His hand moved down her hair. "It's easier that way. I'm sorry, I didn't think about how I was keeping you out."

Beth's mouth twisted. "You're sure there's not some part of you that is attracted to me because I am everything your family detests?"

"No!" He said it emphatically. "I don't normally have contact with muggles, just muggleborns. I always considered them the same as purebloods. It never crossed my mind to become involved with someone because of their blood, one way or the other."

"It doesn't bother you that I'm a muggle? That's even worse than a muggleborn. I can't do magic." Beth's shoulders slumped dejected. "You were right when you first met me. You said I'd never fit in."

"You fit in with me," Sirius protested. He gathered her into his arms and held her closely. "Look, I know we're always going to be different. But I'm happy I met you. I've never felt this way about anyone before."

Sirius cupped Beth's face with his hands so he could look into her eyes. "There's more to me than my ability to do magic, Beth. You challenge me, you understand me, you make me laugh, you put up with my shite." He ran his fingers through her hair. "I care about you, as a person. The fact that you can't wave a wand and do spells –that's far less important to me than you are."

"Except that I can't protect myself and you have to worry about me," Beth wiped her eyes. She looked vulnerable and sad, as if facing a truth she had tried to avoid.

Sirius dropped his hands and stared at her, trying to work out what to say. She was right but how could he explain to her that she was worth it? "That's true. We are facing issues we wouldn't if we were the same. But I'd rather face these issues with you than be without you without a care in the world."

"I'm making your estrangement with your family worse," Beth continued morosely. "I'm driving another wedge between you and your family."

"No, you're not." Sirius was becoming exasperated. "Look, my family and I are done. You can't make it worse, our estrangement is final. The issues between them and me are far bigger than you as a person. Don't you see that? Everything they stand for is repugnant to me." Beth's eyes were downcast, and he put a finger under her chin to lift her face. Her eyes when they met his were worried yet Sirius saw a glimmer of hope in them. "Beth, you mean so much to me," he said softening his voice. "I'm happier now being with you than I ever have been."

Beth's body sagged with relief. "Even when I'm being stubborn and insecure?"

"Even then," Sirius smiled.

Her lips curved as she looked up at him with shiny eyes. She flung her arms around him and hung on tightly. Sirius kissed her hair. "Don't ever doubt how much I care about you," he rumbled against her ear.

"I'd just like it better if you didn't hide important stuff from me," Beth said.

"I was stupid not to have told you about Reg. But I still might not tell you some things if I feel it would help protect you," Sirius admitted honestly.

"You're overprotective when it comes to me," Beth fretted. "That might make things more difficult for us."

"I know," Sirius ran his fingers down her back. "I can't help it, Beth. I never expected how strong my feelings could be. I'm doing the best I can."

Beth nodded. This relationship wouldn't be easy, but studying Sirius' anxious eyes watching her, she knew she was willing to fight for it. "Me too."


	17. The Cricket Challenge

"When the feathers hit the fan, they were chopped up and spewed into little bits of fluff throughout the whole classroom. The air was so thick with them it was hard to see. James had charmed them so they would not settle to the ground. Obviously, the exam had to be postponed. That got us six detentions." Sirius grinned.

Beth snickered, her hands gently running through Sirius' hair. They were on their favorite couch in the Common Room, Beth sitting in the corner with Sirius comfortably sprawled across the couch, his head in her lap. The March day was warm and the mid-afternoon sun brightened the windows. Sirius was counting down his and James' top ten pranks for her.

"You're being ridiculous!" Lily's voice carried across the room. Beth's head snapped to the side and Sirius lifted up to peer across the Common Room. Lily had just entered followed by James and she stomped across the room and flounced on to the couch adjacent to Beth and Sirius' couch. James was close behind, his brow furrowed and his mouth a hard line.

"He's a Death Eater, Lil." James' voice was harsh. "This isn't a normal class project. You'll have to meet with him for weeks outside of class."

"He is the best potions student in the school besides me," Lily pointed out. "Not only will we learn together, but we have a good chance of coming up with a potion that will _matter_ together."

"I know that," James growled. "It doesn't take away from the fact that he's one of Voldemort's top recruits. You know—the lunatic who wants to _eliminate_ muggleborns from the wizarding world!" Beth and Sirius exchanged a guarded look.

"Don't be fucking condescending with me, Potter." Lily's voice was ominous.

James had the grace to look abashed. "Sorry, I didn't mean to sound like that." He sat next to Lily and took her hand. "Don't you see that he's dangerous, Lil?"

"Not to me," Lily shook her head stubbornly. "Not here at Hogwarts. Seriously, James, what do you think he's going to do to me in the library?"

James ran his hand through his hair. "You won't just be in the library. You'll have to use the potions classroom to brew your project. You'll be alone with him in a deserted classroom!"

Lily sighed dramatically and purposefully made her voice sound calm. "He's not going to hurt me, James. I know Severus well enough to know that."

James shook his head, his jaw still clenched. "I don't trust him. He's become more obsessive and dogmatic over the last few years, Lily. We don't know what he's capable of."

Lily threw up her hands in frustration. "We don't know what any of us are capable of, James! We're in a crazy situation with wizards lining up on different sides and families split apart in this awful war."

Beth felt Sirius' muscles tense. He shifted to his side, his head still on her lap so he could watch James and Lily.

Lily put her hand on James' arm and looked into his eyes. "Severus won't bother me, especially at Hogwarts. You're being overprotective."

James stared at Lily, his face stony. Beth moved her hand from Sirius' head to his back. She ran her hand over his tense muscles. She could see he was clenching his jaw to keep from speaking. Beth didn't need him to tell her that he was firmly on James' side. Only respect for Lily and the fear of making their argument worse kept him silent.

"Are you sure you're not just jealous?" Lily asked.

"No, Lily!" James sounded defensive. "It's more than that!"

Lily bit her lip seeing James was deeply disturbed. "James," she said her voice conciliatory. "You're going to have to trust my judgment on this. I know Severus better than you. Nothing will happen."

"You don't know that," James said angrily.

She sighed. "There's probably a miniscule chance something will happen." Lily conceded, but before James could jump on that she continued. "Most likely it would be that I burn my finger accidentally touching the cauldron or the potion boils over. You can't protect me from everything. This is really important to me and I want to do it."

James rubbed his forehead. He was quiet for a few minutes, staring at the fire cheerily burning in front of him. "Fine," he finally said mulishly, sounding like at ten-year-old. "But I don't have to like it."

Lily bit back a smile and took his hand. "Duly noted." James kept his hand in hers but he remained stiff, sitting unnaturally upright on the comfortable couch.

Sirius sank back on Beth's lap again although Beth noticed he, like James, had an uneasy look on his face. Her fingers took up their soothing motions in his hair and he slowly relaxed.

Lily put her other hand on James' arm. "James?" she said tentatively.

"What?" James replied sulkily still refusing to look at her.

"I have a confession to make," Lily told him, her voice low.

James turned to look at her, his face still guarded.

"Even though in this case it's a bit irrational, I love that you try so hard to do everything in your power to keep me safe no matter what." Her eyes were bright on his.

"So now I'm irrational?" James tried to sound put out, but his voice was less sullen and more natural.

Lily scooted over on the couch so she was plastered next to his side. "Maybe just a little," she said, rubbing his arm.

James shook his head ruefully and putting his arm around her, pulled her against his chest. "I can't help it, Lily. You're everything to me."

"You are to me too, you know." She pulled his face down to hers and kissed him. "I promise I'll always be as careful as possible. Okay?"

James sighed. "Yeah, okay."

Lily clambered onto his lap. "I love you, James," she touched his face tenderly. James finally smiled and he lowered his mouth to meet hers.

Beth bent down so that her face was close to Sirius' and whispered, "I think they forgot we're here."

Sirius grinned, his voice as quiet as hers. "They're pretty oblivious. What do you think we can do without them even noticing?"

"I'm suspect you have an idea," Beth said and Sirius' smile widened wickedly. She added, "but then we'd be descending to their base level."

"I can be base," Sirius told her in a confidential tone. His hand reached up to the nape of her neck and pulled her down, but before their lips met they were interrupted by the sound of James clearing his throat. They looked up to see Lily grinning and James shaking his head at them.

"Do I need to hose you down to cool you off, Padfoot?" James asked.

"You're one to talk," Sirius retorted but his lips were twisting in a grin. "Are we fucking even yet?"

James snorted. "Not even close, you git."'

"So competitive," Lily sighed. "These two never stop," she told Beth.

"Speaking of competition," Sirius knew a perfect segue when he saw it, "how about we play a game of cricket? I've worked with Beth on her batting and she hasn't had a chance to play a game yet."

James grinned. "I'm always willing to take you on and teach you a well-needed lesson, Padfoot."

"Why don't we mix things up," Lily suggested. "Girls against blokes?"

James and Sirius looked almost comically shocked. "You two against us? Are you sure?" James asked.

Beth and Lily's eyes met. "Why not?" Beth answered.

"Well, we might slaughter you," Sirius pointed out.

"It's just a game," Lily said. "Our egos can take it if you beat us."

"Just a game?" Sirius sounded offended. "How can you ever win anything if you go in with that attitude?"

James raised his eyebrows at Sirius. "Maybe we should give them a handicap."

Sirius shrugged. "Okay by me. Five points enough?"

"Some wizards think awful highly of their playing abilities," Lily huffed.

"If you really want to spice it up," Beth suggested off-handedly. "We could put a bet on it."

"A bet?" James asked intrigued, his eyes brightening.

"We play Hearts tonight if we win, Beth and I get to be partners and you two have to go to the kitchen and get us snacks of our choice," Lily stated. She and Beth had discovered a shared love of card games and since they overwhelmingly won when partnered, James and Sirius did not let them team up.

"And you have to do another activity of our choice to be identified later," Beth piped in.

"If we win, Truth or Dare with drinks of our choice." Sirius proposed. Neither he nor James ever chose "truth" and both knew exactly the best ways to dare each other—and their girlfriends. "We also get an activity of choice."

"Deal," said Lily and Beth nodded. James and Sirius looked delightedly at each other.

An hour and a half later, they were far less delighted as they walked up the staircase towards Gryffindor Tower. "Bloody hell, Sirius," James shook his head at his best mate. "I can't believe you didn't know your girlfriend could bowl that well."

"Shit," Sirius retorted. "I can't believe you didn't know your girlfriend could hit that well."

"I know." James frowned and stared at Lily. "Lily, why aren't you playing Quidditch? You have amazing hand to eye coordination."

"People trying to ram into me flying through the air? I don't think so." Lily sniffed disdainfully. James threw his hands up in frustration.

Sirius was scowling at Beth who grinned at him. "Did I forget to tell you Diane and I used to play baseball with my brother and his friends?" Beth asked him innocently. "I've always had a good arm."

"Still, how did you learn to bowl?" Sirius asked. "You haven't played cricket before."

"I may have had some help," she admitted a smile still tugging at her lips, her eyes downcast as she assiduously contemplated a spot on her shoes as they stopped in front of the portrait hole to Gryffindor Tower.

"What kind of help?" James asked suspiciously. He opened the portrait hole for them after giving the password.

"Remus practiced with us," Beth's eyes lifted to them and her grin widened. "Several times."

Sirius looked at James as they stepped through the hole. It was dinner time and the Common Room was empty apart from a small group of first-years in one corner. "_Our_ mate Remus, who plays cricket in a league every summer, helped them."

Beth nodded. "He helped me find my sweet spot to aim at for the best bounce when bowling."

Sirius' eyes gleamed and he leaned close to Beth. "It's a good thing you're only referencing cricket," he whispered.

Beth blushed and shoved Sirius in the chest. "You're taking this base thing to a new level," she muttered.

"Do you also play on a cricket league in the summer, Lily?" James said slowly, enunciating each word carefully to Lily who was diligently studying her fingernails.

"No," she shrugged. James waited, staring at her expectantly. There was a short pause before she continued nonchalantly. "My dad does. He likes to practice bowling with me at bat. He has told me I'm a better batter than most of his team." Her forehead furrowed as if she were in deep in thought. "Come to think of it, they have won the championship in their league several years in a row. And my dad is the star player." She gave James a deceptively sweet smile as he swore. "It's much easier to hit against you, James."

Sirius shook his head. "We were fucking set up, Prongs."

James shifted to stand much closer to Lily, towering over her. "Why didn't you ever mention this to me?"

"You never asked," Lily said pointedly. She lifted her chin to meet James' eyes, refusing to step back although he was crowding her space unable to get any closer without touching her. "You just assumed I wasn't good at sports because I wasn't interested in Quidditch."

"What about when we play Mugs?" Sirius spoke up. "You always complained how awful you were."

Lily wrinkled her nose. "Once I've had any alcohol, I have trouble with those light ping pong balls. Plus," she admitted sheepishly, "James likes spiked butterbeer so I purposefully miss some of the time."

James laughed and picking Lily up, lifted her up at the waist and held her above him. "Does it make me twisted that I'm proud that you were able to set us up?" He let Lily slide down and hugged her.

"I've always known you were twisted," Lily said winking at James.

"At least I've only been dating Beth for less than two months," Sirius grumbled. "I would be embarrassed not to know my girlfriend was an ace hitter after dating her half a year."

"Shove it, Padfoot." James' arm was able to reach around Lily and smack Sirius in the shoulder. "You knew Beth was a star water polo player and you still underestimated how good her arm would be in another sport. She bowled more than one peach at us."

"True," Sirius admitted. He picked up Beth's right arm and made a show of running his hands down her arm and over her biceps. Beth laughed and flexed for him.

"Make sure you get both sweet and salty snacks when you go bribe the house elves in the kitchen tonight," Beth's smile was bright. "That game made me hungry."

"What did you decide was the other activity we have to do for the bet?" James asked.

Beth and Lily exchanged an amused look. Lily pointed her wand at the ceiling and a mirrored Disco ball descended slowly, catching the light as it spun.

"Oh, fuck no," Sirius groaned as a look of utter horror came on his face. "I draw the line at disco dancing."

"You've got to be fucking kidding," James protested. His face was as appalled as if Lily had asked him to quit Quidditch. "I _cannot_ even listen to that shite music, let alone dance to it."

Beth and Lily burst out laughing. While Sirius and James watched them in bemusement, they parodied a disco dance complete with fingers pointed in the air, laughing uncontrollably each time they looked at their boyfriends.

"We're not going to make you disco dance," Beth was finally able to sputter, wiping her eyes from the tears of mirth that gathered.

"That was totally worth it to see your faces," Lily still clutched her stomach. "Beth, we should have filmed that."

Sirius grabbed Beth around the waist, picking her up and slinging her over his shoulder. "I can't believe how much you enjoyed my misery," he told her as he carried her to the couch and dropped her on her back. His hands tickled her and she shrieked, giggling and twisting.

James and Lily flopped on the other couch. It was apparent from Lily's hair that James had held her in a headlock and mussed it up. "That was cruel," James told Lily, shaking his head as he smoothed her hair back into place. He was unable to stop a huge grin from splitting his face. "Cruel but impressive."

Sirius sat next to Beth and pulled her onto his lap. "I think this has to go on our top pranks list," he admitted. "Even though it was pulled on us, Prongs."

James nodded. "It was just sadistic enough. Nice work, ladies."

Lily smiled at him. "I've been hanging around you long enough that you've rubbed off on me, James. Although it was Beth's idea for the disco dancing and she's only been around Sirius a couple months."

"I corrupted Beth very quickly. I'm more potent than James," Sirius said arrogantly.

James shook his head in mock shame at Sirius. "It's sodding sad what makes you proud."

"You should take it as a compliment that any besting of you makes me proud." Sirius smirked.

"Lily came up with the cricket challenge," Beth said. "She figured you'd underestimate us."

Sirius nodded. "We'll try not to do that again." He kissed Beth's hair and she cuddled against him, letting her head fall in the crook of his neck.

James' hand tracked the curve of Lily's shoulder. "Hopefully, I learned my lesson in humility."

Lily snorted. "I'm not counting on it."


	18. Potions and little deals

James slouched against the couch, rubbing his shoulder where the Quaffle had hit him. "Do you always have to throw so hard even when we're practicing, you prat?" he good-naturedly asked Sirius.

Sirius shrugged. "I thought you actually knew how to play Quidditch and would be able to catch it. If I had known how much bloody whining you were going to do about it, I might have held back."

"Like you couldn't have noticed Marcia yelled to me and I was looking the other way," James retorted.

"You've got to pay attention in Quidditch," Sirius said in a faux lecture voice. "You're getting soft, Prongs."

"I noticed you didn't stop Beth from babying you when she saw that bruise on your jaw last week." He did a fair job mimicking Beth's voice and accent. "Oh, Sirius, does it hurt? Can I kiss it and make it better?" James threw the snitch he was carrying in his pocket hard at Sirius.

Sirius caught the snitch right before it hit his face. "I didn't care about my bruise. But who am I to stop Beth from caring?" He smirked at James and threw the snitch back. The snitch flapped its wings angrily at being tossed around so rudely.

"Speaking of our girlfriends, why are they late again?" James looked at his watch. "Lily told me they'd be here right after lessons."

"The better question is why do we wait for them?" Sirius replied. "But I'm pretty sure we both know the answer to that one."

James lifted one eyebrow and changed the subject. "Do you think we're ready to run our new play for the Slytherin match? I'm not sure Geoffrey has it down yet."

"He is a bit slow," Sirius agreed. "Let's see if he gets it next practice."

Lily and Beth came through the portrait hole and Lily hurried to James, her eyes alight with excitement. "Look James!" she said, plopping down next to him. Beth followed her more sedately and sat next to Sirius, leaning up to give him a quick peck on the lips.

"What's this?" James looked bemusedly at the old book Lily waved towards him.

"Professor Slughorn found it. It's an old potions book, extremely rare. He thought I might want to look through it for ideas on a potion Severus and I could work on for our project." She was looking down, paging through the book and didn't see James and Sirius exchange a cagey look. Beth did and she frowned at Sirius questioningly.

"I found this complex potion that can be used for witches and wizards who have had traumatic experiences and their minds are unable to cope," Lily said. "After they take the potion, a trained healer can talk them through their past ordeal and help them learn to live with it."

"How does it do that?" James asked.

"While they are under the potion's influence, they will believe whatever the healer tells them." Lily explained. "The healer can use their own happiest memories to make them believe they are safe. Then they are able to work through the trauma."

"So, witches or wizards who have been tortured, like those in that long-term care ward in St. Mungo's, could be healed." James said.

"Exactly!" Lily found the page she was searching for and showed it to James. "It's called the Sanare potion. The only problem is part of the page is ripped out. Some of the ingredients and directions are missing."

"This looks like a pretty advanced potion," James said slowly, reading the page.

"It is," Lily agreed. "If we could figure out the missing bits, we'd have a really important new potion to be used to help heal. I have some ideas on what might work. I showed Severus and he thinks it has potential."

"About that," James said carefully. Lily turned to look at him warily. "I know you think I'm daft, but I want to keep an eye on you when you're working alone with him." Lily sighed and James doggedly continued. "Please, Lil. It'll make me feel better if you tell me when and where you're meeting with him."

"Why don't you just spy on me using your map?" Lily asked tartly. "You've stalked me with that thing before."

"Stalking girls is the most important function of that map," Sirius agreed. Lily glared and Beth raised an eyebrow at him. "Not that I do that anymore," Sirius hurriedly assured Beth. "Only when I don't know where you are and I'm worried." Sirius had shown Beth the map one day in February when they were looking for James and Lily. She had been amazed at the power of that piece of parchment. Of course, she was pretty much always amazed at the magic they took for granted.

"I don't want to make you angry so I'm asking you up front," James told Lily after giving Sirius a baleful look. "I'm being honest with you."

"Fine," Lily muttered. "I'll tell you about our meetings. The first one is tomorrow at 2:00 in the Potions classroom. Happy now?"

"You're meeting on a Saturday afternoon?" James didn't bother to hide his annoyance. "I'll be happier when you're finished with this bloody thing and I don't have to think about it," James informed her shortly.

"I know," Lily conceded gentling her tone. "We only have a number of weeks for this project, James. It won't be long." She took James' arm and put it around her shoulders, nestling into his side.

"So, are we going to play cricket?" Sirius asked the group at large. "Or do we have to sit around here all afternoon listening to James whine? I've pretty much reached my quota for the day already."

"You're just a ray of sunshine today, aren't you?" Beth swatted his arm.

Sirius gave her a mock glare. "Don't start with me, woman," he warned. He ran his fingers possessively over her hair down to cup her shoulder and pull her closer. Beth's heart sped up and she lifted her arms to loop around his neck, pressing her upper body into his chest.

James stood up, reaching for Lily's hand. "Let's go. Peter and Remus are already waiting for us outside."

Sirius, Beth and Remus teamed up against James, Lily and Peter. The game was close and they worked up a sweat. After they finished, they split up in the Gryffindor common room to take showers and change before dinner.

"I picked the short straw and will get the shower last," Sirius said to Beth as she started up the girls' staircase. "Go ahead down to dinner when you're done and I'll be there as quick as I can."

Beth and Lily found James and Peter waiting for them after they had showered and they walked down to the Great Hall. Marlene was at the Gryffindor table and she grinned as they slid in around her.

"A couple of you are missing," she noted.

"Remus and Sirius will be down in a few minutes," Beth said, pulling the basket of bread next to her plate and helping herself.

Peter continued the debate that had occupied him and James the entire way down. "McGinty is a much better pick than Welsh for the seeker. He's the fastest-"

"Welsh has better reflexes," James interrupted. "They'd be crazy not to snatch him up. I'll bet you Welsh is the first pick tomorrow."

Lily rolled her eyes at Beth and Marlene. "I can hardly wait until the Quidditch Pro Picks are over. They've been arguing over what _order_ players will be picked for weeks. As if it _matters._"

James' mouth dropped open in outrage. "Of course it matters. Since Smithers retired, the Catapults need a great seeker to be competitive." He and Peter leaned in towards Lily and began discussing each team's strengths and weaknesses that needed to be addressed during the Picks. Lily looked resigned but listened politely, her lips twitching at her boyfriend's passionate discourse.

Beth leaned closer to Marlene. "Who is that huge blonde guy at the Slytherin table next to Snape?" she asked quietly. She'd noticed him attempting to furtively eyeball their table.

Marlene glanced over, keeping her face casual. "Jacob Wilkes," she said her voice hard. "Nasty piece of shit Death Eater."

Beth had to cover her mouth to stifle a giggle. "Not a fan of his, huh?"

"He's a stupid, dumbfuck, prejudiced arsehole." Marlene's normally friendly voice was flat. "I can hardly wait for our Quidditch match against Slytherin. I look forward to giving him a few bruises. 'Few' may be highly variable." She looked up to find James staring at her delightedly.

"I had no idea you were so vicious, McKinnon," James said with a quick grin. "I like this side of you." He elbowed Lily lightly. "Did you know your roommate was so brutal?"

Lily snorted. "Hell yes. I hear Marlene's mouth running off every day. She's tougher than you, James."

James gave her a look of mock outrage and under the table his hands must have gone to work because Lily squirmed and laughed. Beth's attention was caught by a good-looking girl walking past their table who glared at her. Marlene casually flipped the girl off and then looked askance at Beth.

"Why was Anne giving you that death stare?"

Beth shrugged, trying to look nonchalant. "She probably used to snog or sleep with Sirius. I've had a few of those looks."

Marlene looked at Beth sharply. "I know that's no fun, but you know he's never really cared about any girl the way he does with you, right?"

"That's what he tells me," Beth sighed.

"But it bothers you," Marlene still spoke quietly.

"Yeah," Beth shot a glance across the table at James to make sure he wasn't listening. Lily must have retaliated because he was laughing so hard tears had come to his eyes. James was more ticklish than Lily, to Lily's delight. Beth's eyes flicked to Peter, but he was busy throwing spitballs at Luke, two tables away. "I've only had a couple boyfriends and don't have much, er, experience." She blushed. "It's awkward. I'm not too thrilled he's been so…active either."

"You should talk to him," Marlene said with a nod.

"Easier said than done," Beth groused. "Besides, he kind of knows. We've both made comments about our experience, or in my case, lack of."

"He may not know how it makes you feel. That's what is really important."

"I'll think about it," Beth grimaced.

"Think about what?" Sirius' hand dropped on Beth's shoulder and she jumped, looking at him guiltily. He intuited from her expression the conversation had something to do with him and he circled his arm around Beth's waist as he slid in next to her on the bench. Across from them, Remus smiled at her in greeting as he sat next to Lily.

"Nothing," Beth looked around the crowded hall. Not the time or place for a private discussion. Sirius stared at her and then Marlene who shrugged.

Sirius filled his plate and ate quickly, keeping a wary eye on Beth. Although she tried to act normal, her mind seemed to be elsewhere and she acted distracted and a little downcast.

Marlene smiled at Beth reassuringly as she got up to leave after she finished her dinner. "See you later," she told the table cheerily and left at her usual brisk pace.

James, Lily, Remus and Peter were still eating. Sirius decided he wanted to talk to Beth alone. "Ready?" he asked her as he pushed aside his plate.

Beth gave him a puzzled look. "You barely ate," she pointed out.

"I wasn't that hungry," Sirius lied. "Let's go for a walk."

Beth looked skeptical but she stood up and walked out of the Great Hall with him, uncharacteristically silent. Sirius took her hand as they went outside, the sun low in the evening sky. Their feet automatically took them to the pond and they walked around it until they reached a rough-hewn wood bench on the far side from the castle. Sirius sat down and pulled Beth down beside him, circling his arms around her as they looked across the glassy water of the pond with the golden rays of the sun reflecting on it.

Sirius waited until he felt Beth relax in his arms as she looked across the peaceful water. It was becoming cool and he tightened his hold when she shivered as the sun sank behind a cloud. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked, rubbing his hands up and down her arms.

Beth twisted so she could see his face. "Talk about what?"

"Whatever is bothering you," he said flatly. "You don't hide your emotions very well, Beth."

"It's not that big of a deal," Beth looked down so she wouldn't have to meet his eyes.

"You can tell me about little deals," Sirius said calmly. Beth scanned his face but did not see any signs of impatience or annoyance.

Beth's mouth twisted wryly and she sighed. "I know I'm far more inexperienced than you are."

"Inexperienced, how?" Sirius asked. The sun was peeking from below the cloud and it lit up her eyes and the slight furrow in her forehead as she frowned.

"In relationships," she clarified. When he continued to look puzzled she added, "Physically."

"Oh," Sirius waited.

"It bothers me that you've been with…many girls," Beth choked out.

Sirius squirmed internally. "It hasn't been that many," he protested.

"I get an awful lot of dirty looks these days," Beth told him glumly. "I'm pretty sure many of them have been with you in the past."

"Some might just be hopefuls," he said quickly. "Or girls I've just snogged. I'm not sure what you're thinking, Beth, but I'm a bit picky. I haven't shagged that many girls."

"But I haven't slept with anyone and you have with…more than one." Beth looked disheartened, her eyes cast down again.

"They didn't mean anything to me," Sirius said. "You do."

"Are you sure you're not just trying to pacify me?" Beth shook her head. "Because if you are, don't."

"I'm not. Beth, until I fell for you, I never imagined how it would feel being committed in a relationship. Hell, I never _wanted_ to be in a committed relationship. If I had known how I would feel about you, I would not have shagged girls I didn't care about." Sirius wanted more than anything to get that look off Beth's face.

Beth perked up at that but still looked slightly doubtful. "Have you had any long-term relationships?"

"No," Sirius shook his head. "I've never met anyone before you I thought was worth all that emotional codswallop."

"Is that what you think a relationship involves? Emotional codswallop?" Beth sounded offended.

"It's what I used to think," Sirius said honestly. "Before you. Now I want to be with you in all aspects of our relationship, emotional and physical."

"Really?" Beth turned so that her back was to the sun and her eyes were shadowed as she faced him. The sun's rays behind her lit up the edges of her hair to a dark gold.

"Really," Sirius leaned in to touch his lips to hers. Beth pressed her body tightly to him and one of his hands came up to cup the nape of her neck and pull her closer. The kiss escalated and soon Beth was straddling his lap, slipping her hands under his robe to feel his warmth through his thin shirt. Sirius reciprocated by sliding his own hands under her blouse and up her back. She shivered again as his fingers found their way under her bra strap to follow her spine all the way to the back of her neck. "Beth," Sirius mumbled as he tore his lips away. "Let's go inside."

"Um hm," Beth continued to kiss his neck. Sirius knew no one could see them so far from the castle in the semi-dark, but he wanted to get them inside before this went any further. He stood up, cradling Beth in his arms and started towards the castle. When they got closer, he set Beth on her feet and they hurried in together, Beth laughing as he tugged at her hand until they were running.

"Shit," Sirius stopped after he and Beth had raced up the marble staircase part way. "James and Lily are using the Room of Requirement tonight." He frowned, frustrated. "Let's go to my room." He pulled Beth's hand again to hurry up the stairs.

"But," Beth protested, "Peter and Remus might be there."

"Not if I warn them to stay out," Sirius said. "It's still early. They won't be in our room yet." They burst through the portrait hole to find the Common Room crowded with Gryffindors. Sirius spied Remus and Peter at one of the tables and he strode quickly across the room with Beth in tow.

"Sirius," Beth sounded embarrassed. "Don't…"

Remus looked up when he heard Beth's voice. He saw Sirius' face and nodded impassively when Sirius tilted his head towards their room and lifted his eyebrows. Beth blushed and shuffled behind Sirius' back, unable to meet Remus' or Peter's eyes. Sirius saluted his mates and then made his way to the stairs, holding Beth's hand tightly.

They entered Sirius' room, and he slammed the door and then put a locking spell on it. Sirius dropped Beth's hand to wave his wand almost violently at his bed causing the clothes carelessly tossed on it to fly away and land in a messy pile in his trunk. He threw off his robe and turned to Beth, taking her face between his hands as his lips descended on hers. They grappled to get closer to each other as they edged towards his bed. When Sirius had backed up enough so that he felt the side of his mattress against his legs, he fell back across his bed bringing Beth down on top of him.

Sirius moaned as he felt the full length of Beth's body sprawled on top of his. He wrestled her cloak off while continuing to kiss her. His hands moved under her blouse and up her smooth back to her bra strap again. This time his fingers fumbled to unclasp it. Beth was busy unbuttoning his shirt and she shivered when she felt his hands move to her waist and go up the sides of her ribcage.

The ache inside her grew as his firm fingers moved across her body. She ran her hands down his sides to his hips and tried to yank him up to be closer to her, hearing his gasp when she moved her own hips against him. Sirius' mouth dropped to her shoulder and started moving slowly down causing Beth to writhe against him. His lips returned to hers and he moaned as his hands moved down her torso again.

Beth could tell when Sirius reached his breaking point. He wrenched his lips from hers as he dropped his hands back to her waist. "Beth," he groaned. His lips returned, gentler with more devotion than passion as he tried to slow down.

"It's okay Sirius," Beth said. She lifted a hand up to cup his face.

"What?" Sirius stopped, confused. His face was shadowed in the weak light from his bedside lamp.

"I'm ready, Sirius." Beth spoke nervously. "I want to be with you."

Beth forgot how quick Sirius could be when he wanted to. In a split second, he had flipped her over and she was pressed underneath him. He put his hands on either side of her face and looked into her eyes. "Are you sure?" His eyes were bright, intense on hers.

"Yes," she met his look full on, knowing he needed to see it in her eyes.

"You won't regret this later?" His voice was hoarse.

"No." Beth's lips angled up in a tender smile.

He took a deep, ragged breath and breathed out her name. Then his lips were on hers again and Beth let her mind go blank, thinking only of Sirius.


	19. Preparing for James' birthday

"All set," Beth told Lily, hauling her backpack by one strap. They left their room to go to the library so Lily could study and Beth could work on her lesson plans for the week. As they crossed the Common Room, Beth looked towards the boys' dorm hopefully, but there was no sign of Sirius.

Lily bit her lip. "They were up late last night," she told Beth trying not to sound disingenuous. "Probably a prank or a late night game of Poker."

"Oh," Beth said, mildly disappointed and annoyed with herself for feeling that way. "There was a full moon last night and I wanted to take a walk with Sirius. I couldn't find him. I should have guessed the Marauders were together." Beth mentally kicked herself. It was the first weekend night they hadn't spent together since they'd started dating, but she shouldn't expect to have him to herself so much.

"You didn't walk outside by yourself, did you?" Lily hoped she sounded normal, but worry sharpened her voice. Of course Beth wouldn't know what it meant if she saw a dog, a stag and a rat heading towards the Whomping Willow, but it would be better if she did not spot them.

"No," Beth replied. "It's not dangerous on Hogwarts grounds though, is it?"

"It could be," Lily said honestly. When Beth looked surprised, she elaborated. "I mean, not usually. But things have become a bit strained this year with the war. It's best not to wander around outside at night alone. Some arsehole Slytherin might think it's a good time to pull a prank on you. And Sirius would retaliate big time."

"I hadn't thought of that," Beth looked concerned. Lily was relieved but felt a sliver of guilt at not being able to tell the entire truth. It was not her secret to tell, she reminded herself.

They found a quiet back table in the library and started working. After a couple of hours, Beth had finished mapping out discussion points and assignments for her first and third year Muggle studies classes. She pulled a stack of assignments recently turned in and started reading them, making comments at the bottom of each essay. Lily was engrossed in her potions homework and had not made a sound aside from the turning of pages in her book and the scratch of her quill on parchment.

Marlene slid in to the chair across from Lily, who jumped, her concentration broken. "Isn't it James' birthday in a couple of days, Lily?" Marlene asked.

"Yes," Lily tucked her hair behind her ears and grinned at Marlene. "He's trying to act blasé, but I can tell he's excited."

Beth nodded. "He keeps trying to pump me for information on what Lily's up to."

"So what's the plan?" Marlene smiled. "Should we wake him up at the crack of dawn and make him do stuff? We can start by having him streak through the Great Hall at breakfast."

"No!" Lily glared at Marlene. "It's his birthday. He should have fun, not be harassed."

"Apparently you haven't seen what he does to his Quidditch players on their birthdays," Marlene groused.

"I'll leave the torture bits to you and the team," Lily said. "Beth and I have been working on a scavenger hunt for him."

Marlene's eyes lit up. "Tell me more," she grinned.

"I'll start him off by giving him a clue for his first class at breakfast," Lily said. "He has to figure out the clue to find a present in that classroom. The presents are all small Quidditch related things and each one will have another clue for the present hidden in his next class. At the end, he'll have to put all the clues together to figure out where his last present is."

Marlene leaned towards Lily. "Where will that be?"

"In the Quidditch changing room," Lily said, her cheeks becoming pink.

"Lily, you dirty dog," Marlene pursued her lips. "You'll be waiting there for him to play out some risqué Quidditch fantasy, eh?"

Lily turned beet red and Beth laughed. "Yes, that's part of the gift." Lily started rubbing a spot on her sleeve, unable to meet Marlene or Beth's eyes. "But don't tell anyone else!" Lily blurted looking up with her eyes flashing. "Beth and Sirius are going to guard the door."

"What's the other part of the gift?" Marlene was still grinning at Lily's embarrassed expression.

"Tickets for the Quidditch World cup!" Lily could not have been more excited than if she cared about Quidditch as much as James.

"What?" Marlene's reaction was as stunned as Lily had hoped for. "Lily, that match has been sold out for months!"

"I know," Lily said ecstatic. "They had a competition for the chance to buy tickets for the last thousand seats. Good seats, right in the middle of the pitch. Judges picked what they thought were the best essays. James wrote one but it wasn't chosen."

Marlene leaned back, a smile of utter satisfaction on her lips. "You wrote one too, didn't you? Yours was one of the ones picked."

"Yep," Lily said. She was glowing. "I think mine was one of the ones chosen because it was all about how amazing my boyfriend is and how I wanted the tickets just for him."

Beth nodded. "They love the altruistic ones."

"Shit, Lily, this is genius." Marlene shook her head in amazement. "James is going to have the best birthday ever."

Lily nodded. "It's been so hard not to tell him. When I got the news that my essay was picked, I had to hide from James for a few hours until I could calm down."

"I asked Sirius to keep him busy," Beth said. "Sirius asked James to help him pick out my Valentine's Day gift and so they went to Hogsmeade. James never suspected Lily was avoiding him." Over their Valentine's Day dessert, Sirius had Beth in stitches when he described how he and James had seen the earrings he'd ultimately chosen first but he had made James look at every pair in the store to give Lily more time, much to James' frustration.

A teasing expression came over Marlene's face. "So tell me about James' Quidditch fantasy. Does it involve wearing Quidditch pads?"

"Sometimes it worries me what the team talks about after practice," Lily muttered. "I think there should be a limit on how much you share."

Marlene raised an eyebrow, waiting. Beth bit her lip, avoiding Lily's eyes.

"If you must know, yes, I'll be wearing Quidditch pads." Lily said grudgingly. Beth was pretty sure only Marlene could have coaxed this out of her. Marlene took such a relish hearing about romantic plans (bonus if they were salacious) that Lily couldn't resist.

"And?" Marlene's mouth was twitching. Beth coughed unable to keep the laughter in.

"And some lingerie in Gryffindor colors," Lily admitted. "They don't sell lacy negligees in those colors. I had to find a special charms spell to change one I bought in London."

"This is going to be a great week for our practices," Marlene crowed, her delight so palpable it caused Lily to grin. "James will be so happy, he'll probably let us skip drills."

"Tell the team we'll be meeting after dinner in the Common Room for James' birthday cake," Lily said and then turned a stern eye on Marlene. "Don't taunt James about the lingerie bit. That's private."

Marlene gasped in fake outrage. "Why are you warning me and not Beth?"

"Do I even need to answer that?" Lily shook her head. "Discretion is not your strong suit, Marlene."

"Fine," Marlene huffed. "I'm not happy you're taking away my leverage against my team captain. Sometimes he gets brutal at practices you know."

"You'll live," Lily waved away Marlene's disappointment.

"Why are you having Beth and Sirius guard the door of the Quidditch changing room?" Marlene asked. "Can't you just use a locking spell?"

"Apparently, that hasn't worked in the past," Lily said. "James told me someone who needed privacy recently used a locking spell but a Ravenclaw girl came by who had forgotten her scarf and banged on the door when she couldn't get in."

"Huh," Marlene pretended not to notice Beth was industriously searching her backpack for something, the flap hiding her face from Lily. Marlene managed not to smile at Beth's discomfort but inwardly she was singing. At just the right moment, Sirius was going to hear about this.

"Have you written all the clues for the gifts already?" Marlene asked.

"All but one," Lily said. "Do you want to help?"

"Sure," Marlene said.

"This will be for the first present," Lily explained. "The clues are going to become progressively harder, so this one should be easy for him to guess. It's a broom waxing kit and it will be in Beth's pocket in Arithmancy class. I'm going to charm it to make it small so it will fit easily."

"It could start with: _I'm somewhere your best mate always wants to get_." Marlene suggested. "Because we know Sirius likes to slip his hand in Beth's pocket." She rolled her eyes at Beth who blushed.

"_If you don't find me soon, I'm afraid I'll get wet_," Lily added, "since Beth swims so much."

"Those two sentences together could be considered, um, lewd, if you didn't consider it having to do with me swimming." Beth pointed out.

"Shit," Marlene laughed. "Scratch that, she's right."

After a few more minutes of work laced with joking, they came up with a more suitable clue.

_Where I reside seems to rarely stay still_

_It's warm and cozy which is really quite brill_

_But I was given no choice_

_Forced to hear your best mate's voice_

_So rescue me from this place that's never seen a quill_

"Not our best," Beth pronounced, "but he'll figure it out quickly."

"James loves puzzles." Marlene nodded. "He'll have a blast working these out."

"I'm hungry," Beth said. "Anyone else ready for lunch?"

"I am," Lily said and Marlene nodded.

None of the Marauders showed up during lunch and Beth resigned herself to a boring afternoon finishing her homework for the week as she knew Lily wanted to research to figure out some more possible combinations for the Sanare potion. Fortunately, Marlene refused to allow them to return to the library after lunch. "It's _Saturday_," she protested. "You have the rest of the weekend to hole up in that sodding library. Let's go to Hogsmeade."

"I'm game," Beth grinned.

"Okay," Lily actually didn't need much persuading. She was feeling a little restless after not seeing James the previous night and all morning on a Saturday, and time would go by faster in Hogsmeade.

They dropped off Beth's backpack and Lily's books in their dorm room and set out. It was raining and the girls huddled under a large umbrella Beth had brought. "It rains a lot where I come from too," Beth said.

They visited Honeydukes first, where Beth bought her favorite chocolates to get her through the next few weeks and picked out a mixture of candy for Sirius. She was grateful how many dollars her uncle had converted to galleons so she had plenty of spending money. Next they went to Zonko's so Lily could find a few joke gifts for James.

"My mum's birthday is next month," Marlene said as they talked about where to go next. "Can you two help me pick something out? She loves to read and she needs a new scarf."

They found a beautiful blue scarf easily. Marlene smiled as it was wrapped by the clerk. "It matches my mum's eyes. I think she'll love it."

Lily was perusing the aisle with Quidditch books at the bookstore when she heard a couple wizards the next aisle over. "There's your future sister-in-law," one wizard said mockingly.

"Sod off," Lily recognized Regulus Black's angry voice. Lily's stomach dropped. They must have spotted Beth. She moved a little closer so she could hear them better.

"It's a shame she's a muggle. I wouldn't kick her out of bed," the first wizard said.

"Stay away from her," Reg said shortly. "She's just a muggle. Well-suited for my blood traitor brother."

"Yeah," the unknown wizard laughed. "I won't touch her. But your mum's not going to like it when you tell her."

The two wizards moved away and Lily frowned. Should she tell Sirius? They hadn't sounded threatening, but she knew from James that Sirius was worried about his family's reaction to Beth.

An hour later, Marlene had purchased some books for her mum and Beth had picked out her first wizard fiction book. "Sirius is going to laugh at this," she showed the book gleefully to Lily and Marlene as they walked out of the bookstore. "The hero is a Quidditch star with a 'devilishly handsome smile'."

Marlene snickered and Lily grinned. "Do you want to stop at the Three Broomsticks or go back to Hogwarts?" Lily asked the other two.

"We might as well go back," Marlene said. "We've been here for a few hours and if I know your boyfriends, they'll be traipsing out here soon to find both of you."

The rain had stopped as they started back towards the castle. About halfway back they saw James and Sirius walking towards them. Sirius hurried up to Beth and swung her around in a tight hug when he reached her.

"Have you been playing Quidditch or something?" she asked him curiously. "You're breathing hard." James kissed Lily and was peering in her bag as she showed him what she had bought for him from Zonko's and Marlene was happily teasing James about his hair which was sticking straight up on one side.

"No." Sirius didn't want to tell Beth he'd been uneasy when he woke up and couldn't find her on the Marauder's Map anywhere in the castle. He had dragged James out of bed and they had made their way towards Hogsmeade quickly, not slowing down until they spotted the three girls in the distance. Ever since their run-in with Reg, Sirius felt a little on edge about Beth. It seemed stupid now that he was with her. "I guess I'm not in very good shape," he told Beth.

"Yeah, right," Beth snorted and eyed him skeptically, but let it drop. She handed him the bag of candy she had bought. "I got this for you."

Sirius hadn't eaten since the previous day and he stuffed several chocolate covered almond clusters in his mouth. "Thanks babe," he mumbled mouth full.

"You don't have to inhale it," Beth laughed at him, patting his cheek full of food. "You might actually get to taste it if you chew your food instead of swallowing it whole."

Sirius slung his arm over her shoulder and started back towards the castle. "Did you miss me?" he asked after a few minutes when his mouth was finally empty.

"Yes. It seemed quiet in the Common Room without any of the Marauders around last night." Beth eyed him curiously. "Where were you?"

"Boys night out," Sirius replied. "I'm sworn to secrecy."

"Ah," Beth nodded. "I read for a few hours, and then Lily and I worked on James' birthday." She abruptly stopped aware James was in hearing distance. She glanced over her shoulder but James was busy arguing with Lily and Marlene about whether Lily should give him a hint about his birthday present.

Sirius kissed Beth's cheek. "I missed you too," his voice was low in her ear.

Beth smiled and leaned her head against his shoulder as they made their way into the castle.

The next day, Lily related the conversation she had overheard to Sirius and James when they were waiting for Beth to go to breakfast. Sirius frowned but said nothing when she had finished.

"It didn't seem worrisome to me," Lily told Sirius. "But I thought you'd want to know."

"Who are you afraid of?" James asked Sirius. "You don't think Reg would hurt Beth, do you?"

"No," Sirius considered. "No one in my immediate family would. My cousin Narcissa wouldn't bother, she's too self-involved to care about anyone besides her husband Lucius. Andromeda is great, she's not like the rest of them. It's my cousin Bellatrix who worries me. She's demented."

They heard Beth on the stairs and Lily quickly changed the topic. "How do you want to spend your last day as a seventeen year old, James?" she teased.

James' face perked up. "You mean I get a pre-birthday special day?"

Lily laughed. "That can be arranged." Beth arrived and carefully stepped over James' feet so she could sit next to Sirius.

"Can I open a birthday present early?" James asked slyly. He raised his eyebrows at Lily, a mute appeal on his face.

"Not from me," Lily shook her head. "Mine have a special order." James looked both disappointed and intrigued.

"How fucking old are you, Prongs?" Sirius scoffed. "You can't wait one more day?" James threw a pillow at Sirius.

"You can open mine if you want," Beth offered. Sirius frowned at her for being a pushover and Beth grinned back at him saucily.

"I'm not as weak as Beth. You're not getting mine early," Sirius grumbled. "You should count yourself lucky if you get it on time tomorrow."

James ignored Sirius. "If that's alright with you, Beth, I'd like that."

Beth got up and hurried back up the stairs to her room. She came back swiftly, handing James a flat package wrapped in gold paper. James ripped it open with relish. It was a framed, close-up black and white photo of Lily and James smiling at each other tenderly, their eyes luminous and their happiness obvious. James stared at it without speaking.

"I know it's just a muggle picture," Beth twisted her hands nervously as she stood next to the couch. "It doesn't move or anything."

James turned and looked at her, a huge smile splitting his face. "Just a muggle picture? Are you kidding me? It's perfect. You've captured Lily and how I feel about her." He stood up and hugged Beth. "Thank you, Beth. I love it."

Lily looked at the picture carefully. "It's absolutely beautiful, Beth," she said, her eyes shining. "When did you take it? We didn't pose for this."

"Last month when the four of us were outside while I shot the pictures of the sun starting to set over the Great Lake, I took some candid photos of you two and also of Sirius. I was using my telephoto lens so I was a good distance from you when I shot it." Beth said. "That's why I sent the film to your parents to have processed, Lily. I thought some of the pictures I had taken might be good."

"The lighting is really brill," Sirius said inspecting the picture. "It's so flattering even James looks good."

"The hour before sunset is called the magic hour in photography," Beth explained. "The sunlight is more diffuse and warm because it travels through more of the atmosphere."

Once James had headed up the stairs to put the picture on his bedside table, Lily spoke quietly to Beth. "I know it's James' gift, but I –"

"I had two enlargements printed. Your copy is on your bed," Beth interrupted. Lily beamed and hugged her.

Sirius pulled Beth close to his side after James returned and they walked towards the Great Hall together. "Lily's worked so hard on James' surprises. I hope he has the perfect birthday," she said softly to Sirius, her eyes on James and Lily walking down the marble staircase in front of them.

"You're a very special person. You know that?" Sirius was looking at her oddly and Beth stumbled on a step. Sirius' other arm shot out and wrapped around her stomach, steadying her.

"Um, thanks," Beth squirmed slightly, blushing. Sirius laughed and kissed her forehead.

"Don't worry," Sirius said. "Even if Lily gave James a flobberworm as his gift, he'd be thrilled because it was from her. He'll love this birthday."

Sirius was right. The next night, James told Lily it was his best birthday ever. To Lily's surprise, he treasured her essay more than the Quidditch World Cup tickets.


	20. April full moon

James, Sirius and Peter collapsed on a bench outside of Hogwarts. It was dawn and the late-April sky was brightening quickly as the sun's rays edged over the horizon. The moon had set, and it was warm enough that they were waiting for Remus outside before going back to their room for much-needed sleep.

"I'm glad it's Sunday," Peter moaned. "No morning classes to worry about."

"It does help when the full moon is on a weekend," James agreed, closing his eyes. He turned his face towards the east feeling the warmth of the sun on his skin.

Sirius lolled back against the rough wood of the bench, trying to get comfortable. He dozed off and must have been dreaming about Beth because he heard her voice. He startled awake when he felt a small warm hand gently run through his hair. "Sorry," Beth was bent over, smiling down at him. "I didn't know you were asleep when I first started talking to you. I thought you were just closing your eyes from the sun."

"Beth," he croaked sitting up. "Wh..what are you doing out here so early?"

"Marlene and I just came down to take a walk before breakfast," she said straightening up. Marlene was standing near James, grinning. She gave Sirius a short wave. "It's such a beautiful morning." Beth looked at Peter and James who were looking between her and Marlene warily. "You guys are up early. You look exhausted."

"Yeah," Sirius mumbled pushing up to stand next to her. "We were setting up a prank for Filch and got up awhile ago." His mind wasn't thinking too quickly after being out running all night. Fortunately, Beth didn't look suspicious.

"We are going to go back to bed," Peter added, "as soon as Remus gets here."

"Oh. I'll leave you to get some sleep." Beth kissed Sirius and smiled at James and Peter. "I'll see you later." She fell in step with Marlene and they walked away towards the pond.

Sirius breathed out in relief. The three Marauders sat watching their retreating backs until they were small dots in the distance.

Remus walked up, looking worn out and out of sorts. "I'm ready for sleep," he told them, yawning.

"Beth and Marlene were just here," James said quietly to Remus as they entered Hogwarts.

Remus whipped around to look at Sirius who was behind him. "We told her we got up early to set up a prank on Filch." Sirius said before Remus could ask.

The Marauders were silent, their feet heavy with fatigue, as they ascended the stairs to the tower. Once in their room, Remus addressed Sirius. "Do you want to tell Beth about-me?"

Sirius shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea."

James gave him a quizzical look. "Why not? Are you afraid she will think less of Remus?"

"No." That thought had never crossed Sirius' mind. "She's very sensitive. I think she'll react similar to the way Lily did —she'll understand what that means and will feel sad for Remus."

"Then what?" Peter asked.

"She doesn't really know that much about the wizarding world," Sirius said slowly. "She was just told stories by her uncle. Since coming here, she's been shocked so many times by stuff we're all used to."

He turned to James. "Remember when we told her about the Whomping Willow? Her first thought was it should be chopped down. Of all the students at Hogwarts, only the four of us and Lily know the real reason why the Whomping Willow was planted. It is extremely dangerous. How many Hogwarts students have suggested cutting it down? None. It shows how differently real muggles think than we do."

Remus frowned. "Are you sure you're not overestimating how shook up she'd be?"

"Maybe," Sirius conceded. "I think Beth feels a bit isolated at times by how unusual wizards are. Lily told me once how scary learning all about the magical world was when she first came to Hogwarts. Muggleborns adjust to it over time, but at least they are also learning magic and how to protect themselves. We're used to magical creatures, plants and spells that can hurt us. We grow up with it, its part of our lives. Beth's used to a world where people chop down dangerous trees just in case some kid wanders too close."

James was watching Sirius shrewdly. "That's not your only reason, is it?"

"No," Sirius sighed. "We're unregistered animagi. Beth is really close to her uncle John. He dotes on her. He had to do a huge amount of work—calling in favors, begging—to get Dumbledore to allow her to come here. If we tell her, she'll be forced to hide this from him because he would feel compelled to inform Dumbledore and the Ministry of Magic if he knew. I hate the thought of making her have to keep a secret like this from someone she adores and looks up to in her family. I don't want to do that to her."

"Isn't it hard for _you_ to keep this secret from her?" James asked. "I struggled hiding it from Lily until you gits let me explain."

"Yeah," Sirius admitted. "But we only have two more full moons here at Hogwarts. It's only a short amount of time before it's over."

"You think she's going to go home to her old life in a couple months and never see us again, don't you?" Remus was watching Sirius with a little too much understanding for his liking.

Sirius felt as if a heavy weight had dropped on his chest but he nodded. "That's what's best for her."

The next several weeks slid by quickly. The weather grew warmer with more sunny days worthy of cricket as April became May. Sirius still needed to warm the pond but he and Beth were able to walk slowly to the castle after swimming without their hands and lips turning blue. Sirius had never been this happy. He let his guard relax as his brother continued to avoid him and he heard nothing mentioned about his relationship with Beth.

One bright day, Beth lay on the couch, her head comfortably cushioned in Sirius' lap, as she quizzed him on spells for the Transfiguration portion of his N.E.W.T.s. At least she had been quizzing him at one point. Sirius felt he had studied enough for the afternoon and was intent on distracting Beth with his mouth.

"Sirius!" Beth laughed as he bent down to nuzzle her jaw. "I thought this was important to you."

Sirius captured her lips with his, his tongue exploring her mouth in lazy circles. "So is snogging you," he told her when he had to stop to let them both breathe. His hand, resting on her flat stomach, itched to move but he just managed to restrain himself. The Common Room was too public.

Beth had forgotten what she had said and she struggled to get her mind back on track. "You..you need to do w-well on th—" Her eyes fluttered closed as his lips moved over hers again.

"I need positive reinforcement to keep studying," he said against her lips. "It's reinforcement time."

Beth laughed before being cut off again. She gave in, lifting her arms to go around his shoulders, her hand running through his hair. Sirius cupped her face and tilted her head for a better angle as his mouth became hard and demanding.

"Providing a show for the first-years?" They heard James' laughter in his voice.

Beth broke away, her face hot. Sirius glared at James as he pulled Beth up so that her back was against his chest, his arms encircling her. "For fuck's sake, Prongs, you've learned all too well how to bring a mate down."

"I try," James grinned. He flopped on the couch next to theirs. "How goes the studying?"

"I'm sick of it already," Sirius groaned. "Beth won't let me stop until we finish this section."

James snorted. "It's a good thing one of you has some self discipline."

Lily appeared at James' side. She slammed her rucksack on the floor, causing Beth to jump and Sirius to stare in surprise. Lily was not usually the one to vent her frustrations loudly. She sat next to James on the couch with a grunt. James took one look at her face and put his arm around her, squeezing her shoulder.

"I take it your project isn't going so well," James said when no one else spoke.

"No. I had high hopes my newest idea would gain us some traction today, but no such luck." She ran her hands through her hair, frowning as she stared off into space.

"Does Snape have any ideas?" Sirius asked.

"His theories have been worse than mine in practice," Lily said absently. She toyed with the button on her blouse cuff. "There's something niggling at the back of my mind. I told Severus I might have one more idea but I need to think about it." Lily sighed wearily. "If this doesn't work, I think we'll have to give up on this. We're running out of time."

James looked relieved but he smiled at Lily sympathetically when she looked at him. "I know you've been working hard on this, Lily."

Lily nodded and kissed James on the cheek. "I'm going up to my room for awhile. I need to think."

She left and James sighed as he turned back to Sirius and Beth. "Let's hope this ends soon," he said. "So far, Snape's never caught me patrolling the hall when they're working on the potion but his friends have come to get him a few times and I've had a few narrow escapes. Wilkes almost bumped into me today when he and Snape came hurriedly out of the door."

Sirius nodded. "I noticed Wilkes or Rosier often come to pick up Snape at the end too. I heard Snape tell Lily it was because they were partnering on a project in Transfiguration and they set their time to be right after the potions project."

"It looks like Lily was right," James said. "Snape hasn't touched a hair on her head."

"Good," Sirius grunted.

"You don't think I was an idiot for being suspicious, do you?" James asked.

"Hell, no," Sirius said flatly. "It's better to be prepared with pricks like him just in case." The muscles in his arms involuntarily squeezed Beth tighter.

Beth twisted a little so she was turned towards Sirius and frowned, slightly anxious. "You really don't think much of him, do you?" She cocked her head at Sirius.

James snorted and Sirius raised an eyebrow at her. "That prat is the last wizard in Hogwarts James or I would trust." Sirius' voice was harsh. He looked down at Beth, studying her. "You've never detested anyone, have you?"

"No," Beth said carefully. "Is that a bad thing?"

"Of course it's not a bad thing. I'm glad." Sirius laughed. "You probably couldn't hate someone that way if you tried."

"Yes I could," Beth retorted. "If anyone wanted to hurt someone I cared about, I would be just like James is about Lily." She had a fierce, stubborn look on her face that secretly thrilled Sirius.

"Really?" Sirius had a calculating gleam in his eye. "So who would cause your protective instinct to flare?"

"Someone's really fishing for compliments," James commented to the room at large with a derisive snicker. "I'll let you have some privacy while Beth lets you down easy, Padfoot." He got up and loped off towards their dorm room.

Sirius ignored James' exit, studying Beth. Her eyes darkened as she looked at him. "Here at Hogwarts?" At his nod, she pretended to consider, then grinned when he nudged her. "You, you idiot."

"So lovingly phrased," Sirius put his hand on his chest. "You really know how to make a bloke feel special, babe."

Beth laughed. "Special is one way to describe you, Sirius Black." Sirius grinned and hauled her up on his lap, fitting his lips to hers again.

_**Note: The next chapter is long-and I'll try to get it up really soon.**_


	21. The Sanare Potion

Beth was woken by the furtive sounds of someone moving around near her bed. She opened her eyes blearily to see Lily quietly pulling a sweater over her damp hair. Beth rubbed her eyes, and Lily turned to her.

"I didn't wake you, did I?" Lily asked. "Sorry."

"That's okay," Beth yawned. "Are you going down to breakfast? If you give me five minutes to shower, I'll come with you."

Lily nodded and Beth hurried to take a shower. Several minutes later they stepped out of the portrait hole in the quiet castle. "No one else seems to be up this early on a Saturday," Lily observed.

"Why did you wake up this early?" Beth asked, stifling another yawn.

"I have an idea for our potion project," Lily's smile was blinding. Her excitement was contagious and Beth perked up. "Severus and I aren't meeting until 10:00 this morning but I couldn't sleep. I think I figured out something that will work."

"That's great, Lily." Beth touched Lily's arm. Lily's exuberance radiated from her, her eyes sparkled and her cheeks had a slight flush.

"This potion could be really important," Lily's tone became serious. "There are many wizards and witches who could be helped with it."

They entered the Great Hall. Lily and Beth sat at the near empty Gryffindor table and filled their plates. Beth saw Snape enter the hall a few minutes later. He looked at Lily and she smiled at him, her excitement obvious. Snape gave a curt nod and then went to the Slytherin table.

Lily turned back to Beth. "I might end up having a career in Potions. Professor Slughorn has been encouraging me. He said I'm one of his top students ever." She blushed slightly and looked at Beth apologetically. "Sorry, that sounded like I was bragging."

"No, that sounds like the truth," Beth said honestly. "Lily, you are amazing with Potions. I think it would be a great career for you."

Lily grinned. "I'm too excited to sit still. Maybe I should do some research this morning."

"That sounds like fun on a Saturday," Beth said drily. "Where is James this morning?"

"He has a Quidditch meeting with McGonagall at 8:00 this morning. He'll probably roll out of bed five minutes before that." Lily checked her watch. "It's almost 8:00 now. Are you finished eating?"

Beth nodded and they stood up. She noticed Snape watching them from across the room. He wasn't alone, Wilkes sat next to him. Beth was surprised to see that Snape's eyes were narrowed and Wilkes' were calculating as they followed Lily's movements. Beth felt a tinge of uneasiness. She looked towards Lily, but Lily was chatting about James and hadn't noticed. Beth decided to tell Sirius later and see if he felt there was any cause for concern.

"Let's ask James and Sirius to take us to Hogsmeade this afternoon," Lily suggested as they walked up the marble staircase. They had stopped for Remus and Peter as they passed through the Great Hall and chatted a few minutes before the two Marauders went outside. "I think I'll be in the mood for a celebration after working on the potion."

"Sirius suggested we go to Hogsmeade this afternoon too," Beth replied. "I'm out of chocolate so I'm all for it."

"I'm heading over to the library," Lily told Beth when Beth turned to head towards Gryffindor Tower. "I'll see you this afternoon."

"Okay," Beth nodded. Lily turned the corner towards the library and Beth remembered she hadn't asked Lily where and when they were meeting later. She hurried after Lily.

"Lily," Beth heard Snape's voice call. Beth was almost around the corner but for some inexplicable reason, she froze. Snape's voice did have his usual deadpan emotionless delivery. He actually sounded keyed up. Was that possible?

"Hi Severus," she heard Lily answer buoyantly.

"Can we work on the Sanare Potion now?" Severus asked quickly. "I have something else that came up to do later this morning but I really don't want to postpone our meeting when our time is running out."

"Sure," Beth could hear Lily's vibrant voice. "I was thinking about where we might have gone wrong last time and—"

Beth could no longer hear them as they moved down the corridor away from her. She paused, worried. Something felt wrong about this last minute change. She knew Sirius and James had been keeping watch, albeit distant, when Lily worked with Snape. Now he had changed their meeting at the last minute and Beth was the only one who knew. Snape had seen Lily in the Great Hall and hadn't told her then that he needed to meet earlier, he had waited until she was alone. She checked her watch. James was in his meeting with McGonagall. She turned back towards the Gryffindor Tower. She needed to find Sirius.

Beth ran up the stairs, her unease deepening. She entered the Common Room out of breath. It was quiet with only a few students lounging on the couches. There was no sign of Sirius and she headed to the boys' staircase.

Relief flooded through her when she heard footsteps and looked up to see Sirius walking down. He smiled when he saw her, his eyes bright. "Hey babe, loo-" Sirius stopped when he saw her expression. He rushed down the last steps to reach her. "What's wrong?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm worried about Lily," she said quickly. Sirius' eyebrows drew together and he listened intently as she continued. She told him about Snape and the other Slytherin wizard watching Lily at breakfast and Snape changing the time of his meeting with her. "Something just felt off when I overheard Snape talking to her," Beth continued. "His voice was eager, but there was a tension to it."

"Wait here," Sirius told her. He went back up to his room, returning with a silver cloth. "We are going to need James' invisibility cloak."

Beth touched the cloak gently. She was still awed by the power of its shimmering fabric.

Sirius took her hand and they hurried to the potions classroom. Sirius slipped the cloak over both of them and eased open the door a slit to look in. It was empty.

"This is where they usually work, isn't it?" Beth asked Sirius. He nodded, looking more anxious.

"I don't have the Marauder's Map," Sirius grimaced and then swore. "Remus and Peter went out early this morning to look for something Remus dropped and he took it to watch out for Filch. Filch has a vendetta against Remus right now. I don't know why, Remus is the only one of us who tries not to antagonize Filch." He frowned. "This is shitty timing."

"Should we check all of the classrooms?" Beth asked. There were so many, it could take them a long time.

Sirius sighed "I guess we have to." They started working their way quickly down the hall. Twenty minutes later, they reached a small classroom that was out of the way from the rest near a small back staircase. "I should have thought of this," Sirius muttered. "This is an old classroom Slughorn uses as a Potions lab. He has supplies stocked up here." Hidden under the cloak, Sirius pulled the door a fraction open and peered through the crack. He gave Beth a nod when he saw Snape and Lily working over a cauldron.

They opened the door wider and slipped through when Lily dropped something into the cauldron that caused the mixture to send out a puff of steam capturing her and Snape's attention. Quietly, Beth and Sirius moved along the side wall of the classroom and positioned themselves where they could watch but were in the shadow of an alcove. Beth checked the cloak to make sure their feet weren't showing. Sirius had to stoop especially when someone else was under the cloak with him.

For the next half hour, they watched as Lily and Snape worked on the potion. Beth and Sirius had quietly slid into a nearby chair, Beth perched on Sirius' lap so they fit under the cloak. Her tension slowly melted away as the time passed and she leaned her head against Sirius' chest and relaxed. Maybe she had been wrong and nothing was going to happen.

She jerked slightly when she felt Sirius' muscles tense. His eyes were gleaming in the shadows and she followed his gaze to see the door to a supply closet across the room open a few inches.

Neither Lily nor Snape could see the closet door from where they were standing. Beth and Sirius watched closely but the door gently closed. They stared at each other in bemusement under the cloak. Sirius' right arm was anchored around her waist and he carefully moved it so his wand was in a ready position.

"Severus, I think it's done," Lily announced eagerly a few minutes later. "Let's run the tests for potency."

Snape looked over her shoulder. "Those aren't obscured in the book?"

"No," Lily barely breathed as she stared down at the potion intently. She gently dropped a few drops from a beaker into the potion and they watched entranced. Lily picked up the book. "That worked." Beth and Sirius looked at each other. They couldn't see the liquid in the cauldron, but it seemed to be going well.

Snape took a strange-looking leaf from a jar and dropped it in the potion. "It changed to bright purple, just it should," he said with grim satisfaction.

Lily went to the cupboard and returned with another beaker. She carefully added three drops to the potion and their eyes widened as they watched the potion bubble up almost over the edge. "Yes!" Lily exclaimed. "Perfect. Severus, I think we're ready to have someone drink it and test i-"

The closet door was thrust open so hard behind them, the door bounced against the wall. Wilkes stepped out with his wand and before Lily could react, he sent a spell that spun her wand to him. "What do we have here?" His voice sounded both derisive and satisfied. "You figured out how to make the Sanare potion, eh?"

Lily's mouth dropped. "Wilkes! What are you doing here?" She turned to Snape. "Severus, where's your wa-?" She froze when she saw his wand was out and pointed at her also. She looked between the two of them. "W-what's going on?" Under the cloak, Beth stood quickly up, followed by Sirius who then pushed her behind him.

"We want to thank you for contributing to our cause," Wilkes said coldly. "This potion will be very useful for our friends." He smirked at her scornfully. Snape kept an eye on the door, keeping his wand ready if it moved.

"What do you m-mean?" Lily stuttered. "You want a potion that would help heal people who have been tortured?"

"Are you mental? This potion has practical applications not mentioned in that stupid book," he gestured to the potions book. "With this, we could destroy people's sense of safety and then interrogate them. Breaking Aurors and other Ministry arseholes would be a piece of cake."

Lily blanched, her eyes flicking between Wilkes and Snape. Sirius had heard enough but he waited for an opening when both Death Eater wannabes were only watching Lily.

"This might hurt less if you turn your back." Wilkes lifted his wand close to Lily's face.

"You promised she would not be hurt," Snape snapped over his shoulder, without bothering to turn to Wilkes. Lily's eyes widened.

"Just a little bump on her head that she'll think came from her fall," Wilkes sounded disappointed. "It's a shame you are such a klutz, Evans. You see, you're about to trip and hurt yourself."

"We had an agreement," Snape stated to Wilkes in a cold emotionless tone.

Wilkes snorted. "She can't be allowed to realize she came up with the directions for the potion and that we stole it. She'll be fine in a few days. I just need to wipe the last hour from her memory and she'll wake up refre—"

"No!" This time Snape angrily turned quickly to Wilkes, his back momentarily towards Sirius. It was just what Sirius was waiting for. Sirius whipped the invisibility cloak off but managed to leave it over Beth. He shot a spell at Wilkes and the two wands sailed from his hands towards Sirius. As they were still arcing through the air, he flicked his wand at Snape, looking all too satisfied when Snape fell down senseless. Sirius slashed with his wand again and cords wrapped around Wilkes' arms and legs causing him to crash to the floor.

Beth stayed huddled under the cloak knowing that Sirius didn't want Wilkes to see her. Sirius tossed Lily her wand and walked to stand over the thrashing Wilkes. "So," he drawled and even Beth's skin crawled at how cold his voice was. "You were planning to share this potion with your Death Eater friends."

Wilkes glared at Sirius but did not speak. "Come on now, Wilkes." Sirius' voice was silky smooth but even Wilkes flinched a little at the thinly disguised venom in it. "Tell me your little plan. It sounded to me like you wanted to pass the Sanare potion along to Death Eaters to use to _torture_ wizards. You decided it would be better used to break minds rather than heal them. Aren't you just a sodding radical thinker?"

Wilkes squirmed and swore when it just made the cords binding him tighten. Sirius continued thinking out loud. "You had to have a good reason for making the extra effort to make Lily forget that she recreated the potion. You not only wanted to steal the potion to use for your fucked-up Death Eater reasons, but you didn't want it passed on to be used the way it was meant to be."

"Sod off," Wilkes hissed. He thrashed again futilely.

"I don't believe I will," Sirius' icy control was more frightening than anger. "I seem to be on the right track here." He regarded Wilkes closely. "You didn't want it to be used for healing, and you didn't want the Ministry to know _what_ you were using for your torture." He paced around Wilkes, pausing to twitch his wand to make a cord pull tighter around his chest until Wilkes groaned. "If the Ministry didn't know what the potion was that you were using for torture, it would be harder for their healers to help your victims, wouldn't it?"

Sirius could see he'd guessed correctly. Wilkes' eyes bulged with anger and he swore once before compressing his lips. "What a quandary you were in," Sirius said. "You found a potentially valuable potion. You needed the brains of a _muggleborn_ because you're too stupid to figure out how to make this potion yourself." He prodded Wilkes ribs none too gently with his foot. "Yet you are planning to use this potion in the fight against muggleborns. Am I close?"

Wilkes flinched against Sirius' foot. Sweat dotted his forehead. "The truth hurts, doesn't it?" Sirius said conversationally. "Maybe you're too pathetic to see the irony of the situation."

He turned to Lily whose hand was clearly shaking even as she held her wand ready. "Are you alright?" Sirius asked her, his voice radically different from his chat with Wilkes. She nodded and he pointed to the cauldron of potion. "You're going to need to destroy that. We're going to have to keep this potion secret from some of our fellow _friends_ here at Hogwarts."

Wilkes couldn't stay quiet. "Speaking of secrets, watch your back, Black." Wilkes sneered, his voice low and menacing. "There's a rumor that Gryffindor Tower has one. Don't think you're safe outside of Hogwarts."

Sirius felt his blood run cold. His mind screamed with panic that he struggled not to show and it was with an effort he was able to keep himself from looking to make sure Beth was still hidden. "Shut the fuck up!" He yelled, losing control for the first time and shot a spell at Wilkes that knocked him out.

Sirius stared at Wilkes' unconscious form and forced himself to calm his breathing. He needed to think quickly in case Wilkes and Snape had any backup that might arrive. His hand was clammy on his wand and he wiped it quickly on his pants. "Beth, come here." Sirius called. Beth pulled off the invisibility cloak and rushed over to him. Lily's eyes widened further at the sight of Beth, but shock was making her legs unstable and she sank into a chair. Sirius saw how shaken Lily was and he turned to Beth.

"I need you to help Lily make it look like their potion exploded. We have to make them believe Lily never discovered how to make the Sanare potion or they'll come after her. I'm going to wipe Wilkes' memory and take him to the back stairs. Fortunately, he is the one who is going to have an accident coming down them. One that leaves him more than a few bumps and bruises." Sirius let a small gleam of satisfaction cross his face before he was back to business. He turned to Lily. "Lily, I need you to obliviate Snape's memory of this." Lily nodded and shakily pointed her wand at Snape, turning it gently.

Sirius turned his own wand at Wilkes and the frown still on Wilkes' face melted away. Lily waved her wand at the cauldron and the potion disappeared. "We can't leave any of this," Lily told them with a waver in her voice. "I don't want Severus to be able to figure out what is in it." She rushed over to a large container set on the counter. "This is the stock we used to start it. I'll add a few different ingredients to it to use as splatters for our explosion."

"Good thinking," Sirius said approvingly. "Lily, I need to destroy the page in the book with the instructions. I don't want Snape to be able to recreate this. I'll make it look like the potion burned it." He looked at her until she nodded grimly, her face tight. Sirius pointed his wand at the book and scorching liquid sizzled on the page, burning down through most of the book.

Under Lily's direction, Beth put away several of the ingredients scattered around the table. Lily took out a few different ones and left them casually strewn near their workspace. Sirius made the unconscious Snape's body fall back against a table so that the back of his head hit it hard. "That will leave a bump," he muttered with a fierce satisfaction. "Now we need a few bruises." He caused Snape's arm and one of his legs to rise and then fall against the hard flagstone floor. He whipped his wand again and a few spots on Snape's flesh turned red as if he'd suffered a burn from hot liquid. Beth met Sirius' eyes and seeing the suppressed fury in them decided that Snape was being let off easy.

Sirius took the invisibility cloak from Beth and lifted Wilkes' inert body in the air with a flick of his wand. "I'm going to take him to the scene of his accident. Then I'll alert James and McGonagall that the potion exploded." His eyes flicked to Lily. "Lily, we can't tell James what really happened until we have him somewhere private. He would not be able to stop himself from attacking Snape and we need McGonagall and Snape, when he becomes conscious, to think that James is only upset you were hurt."

Something flickered in Lily's eyes. She opened her mouth to protest, but Sirius forestalled her. "I know, but it won't be long until we'll get you away and we can tell him everything," Sirius reassured her. "You're going to need to put some fake injuries on your body. Maybe some liquid burns and a cut. You can say Snape was closer to the potion when it exploded and you fell to the ground to avoid the hot potion."

Sirius turned to Beth. "Keep a look-out at the door for James in about five minutes. He'll come at a full sprint and will get here before McGonagall and me. As soon as you see him coming, help Lily to lay down a few meters away from the cauldron and then kneel next to her as if you arrived a few minutes ago and are helping her. I'll be right behind him and then McGonagall will be here. We'll act it out until we're safely away."

Lily flicked her wand and what looked like a cut appeared on her face. Sirius covered Wilkes' body with the invisibility cloak and left, giving each of them one last meaningful look. Beth went to Lily and put her arm around her. "What else do we need to do?" She kept her voice calm and practical to stave off the shock that she knew Lily was fighting off.

Lily allowed herself to lean against Beth for comfort for a few seconds and then straightened up. "I'll show you," she said. She reheated the cauldron with her wand so that it burned fiery red and poured the stock potion in it. She and Beth added the new ingredients to the hot potion. Lily flicked her wand and caused some splatters of the new potion to shower around the cauldron, making sure a few fell on Snape. Beth flinched when Lily sprinkled some of the hot liquid on her own face and arms, causing red burn marks from the boiling liquid. She made larger droplets of the potion spray in various directions around the room. She looked around and nodded. "I think we're ready." Beth took her arm and they picked a spot a few meters in the other direction from where Snape lay. Lily sat on a chair near it shivering, relieved she didn't need to lie on the cold floor for very long and Beth started for the door.

"Go ahead and think about what almost happened now, Lily." Beth told her quietly. "Let yourself go into shock. It'll seem more natural if you're shaken." Lily looked at her with hollow eyes and nodded.

It was actually more important to listen than to watch for him. Beth heard James running well before he was visible and she let the door fall shut and signaled Lily who dropped to the floor. Beth barely had time to kneel next to Lily before the door flew open and James barreled in at full speed.

"Lily!" he cried in relief when he spotted her and saw she was conscious and not badly injured. He was on the floor at her side in a split second and he touched her carefully. "Are you alright?" he asked, gently gathering her close. Lily nodded, closing her eyes against his chest. Now that James was here, tears sprang naturally to her eyes.

Sirius burst through the door. "Is she alright?" he called out and James nodded. When James looked back at Lily, Sirius flicked his wand at Snape who started to moan as he regained consciousness. McGonagall came in thirty seconds later. She took in the situation at a glance and wasted no time. "Mr. Black, go get Madam Pomfrey. It appears Mr. Snape will need to visit the hospital wing."

She moved over to Snape who was struggling to sit up. McGonagall kneeled beside him and seemed satisfied his injuries were not serious. She stood up and walked over to the cauldron, looking around the room, her eyes noting the splatters of potion.

Lily spoke up from James' arms. "Our potion exploded, Professor McGonagall. I don't know what happened." She was trembling, tears pooling in her eyes. "I thought this one might work."

McGonagall threw her a strange look but Snape made a noise and she turned back to him. "Mr. Snape," she said as his eyes opened. "Do you remember what happened?"

Snape looked around confused. He looked startled when his eyes found James, ashen faced and looking more distressed than he'd ever seen him, holding a shaking Lily with Beth squatting next to them. He shook his head. "No," he managed to croak. "I…remember coming in here and setting up our workstation and adding a few drops of…" He frowned, thinking. "..something. The rest is blank."

Madam Pomfrey bustled in, followed by Sirius. She summed up the situation in a quick glance and went to Snape's side. The next few minutes she checked over Snape and then summoned a floating pallet to convey him to the hospital. She came to Lily, who was quaking in James' arms. "Let me give her a quick look over, Potter." Madam Pomfrey ordered and James reluctantly let Lily go. Madam Pomfrey seemed satisfied after examining Lily and she nodded briskly. "You'll be fine. Just minor burns and a scrape. I'll get you some salve to put on those burns."

The door swung open and a wizard Beth remembered seeing at the Slytherin table came in. He stopped, shocked when he saw the scene in front of him. His eyes went from Snape, grimacing as Madam Pomfrey helped him to settle more comfortably on the pallet, past the still steaming cauldron with splatters of liquid around it to McGonagall staring at him icily and then on to James, paler than usual and looking somewhat ill as he held tightly to Lily who was obviously in shock and last to Beth, kneeling on the floor, her eyes wide with Sirius holding her shoulder standing behind her. Beth felt the tension in Sirius' hand on her shoulder but his face only showed concern for Lily.

"There is quite a lot of traffic to this remote classroom on a Saturday," McGonagall said acerbically. "What brings you here, Mr. Rosier?"

Rosier started and stammered. "I…I was looking for Snape." His eyes went to Snape who stared at him coldly.

"Is that right?" McGonagall pursed her lips. She let the question hang but Rosier did not speak. "Well, you found him. Why don't you accompany Mr. Snape and Madam Pomfrey to the hospital wing. Miss Evans and Mr. Snape had an accident while working on their potion."

Rosier nodded and he left with Madam Pomfrey and Snape floating on the pallet soon after. Professor McGonagall quirked an eyebrow at Lily once the door had swung shut. "Now, suppose you tell me the full story, Miss Evans. What happened?"

Lily looked confused. "I told you, Professor McGonagall. Our potion exploded. Snape was closer than I was. He stumbled backwards and fell. I heard a sound, maybe he hit his head on the table. I dropped to the ground to avoid the hot liquid splatters. There's not much else to it."

McGonagall's piercing glance moved to Beth. "Miss Peterson, how did you and Sirius become aware of this situation?" Sirius made a move as if to speak, but she raised her hand to silence him. "I'm asking Miss Peterson."

Beth's mind raced. "Sirius and I were walking down the corridor—" she started.

Professor McGonagall raised an eyebrow. "A classrooms corridor on a Saturday?"

Beth gulped. "Yes, well, we were trying to go somewhere, um, private." She blushed as she looked at Sirius. The lie must have rung true as McGonagall nodded looking unsurprised at this. "We heard a noise. I th-think Lily shrieked. We burst in. When Sirius saw Lily was conscious and not badly hurt, he ran to get James…and you."

"Mr. Black didn't notice Mr. Snape?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Um, he saw him but he didn't check him." Beth swallowed, hoping this sounded believable. McGonagall looked at Sirius who shrugged.

"Sorry, Professor," Sirius added. "I'm afraid I was less concerned with Snape than Lily. You know there's no love lost between us." McGonagall looked less suspicious. She turned her attention to Lily and James.

Professor McGonagall tilted her head at Lily and studied her without speaking. Her eyes moved to James, worry over Lily etched across his face. "I can see you're shaken up, Miss Evans," she said finally. "I'll let you think about it. If you have _anything_ else you would like to add, please come see me." She moved her wand and the room was restored to order. She gave Sirius one more quizzical look and left.

Lily, Sirius and Beth all exhaled a sigh of relief as the door closed again. James frowned, looking at each of them suspiciously for the first time. "What's going on?" he finally said.

"Can we go upstairs to explain?" Lily asked him plaintively. "I really want to leave this room." Her face was white and her hand shook as she picked up her wand and stowed it away.

"Lily," James started.

"Please, James." Lily said shakily. James nodded and helped her up.

Sirius came over to Beth and took her hand. "Are you okay?" he asked her quietly. She leaned her head against his chest for a minute, wrapping her arms around his waist. Sirius put his arms around her and held her close, feeling the slight tremor in her arms. Beth let herself be soothed by the sound of his steady heartbeat. After a quiet minute, they followed Lily and James out the door.


	22. Aftermath

"Room of Requirement?" Sirius asked Lily as he and Beth came into the corridor. Lily nodded, leaning against James. When they arrived in the corridor outside the room, Sirius paced until a door formed in the wall. They entered a comfortable room with two couches, a couple of blankets, and a coffee table with a pitcher of water and glasses on it.

James pulled Lily on his lap as soon as she sat down. Beth and Sirius sat on the opposite couch, Sirius hauling Beth up close against him. He held her tightly, trying not to let her see how shaken he was. He had managed to push Wilkes' threatening words out of his mind the past several minutes but now they came rushing back and he wearily tried to tamp them down. One thing at a time. He knew James was going to go ballistic when he heard their story.

Sirius looked at Lily apologetically. "I know you worked hard on that potion, Lily."

"It's safer to have it destroyed," Lily met his sympathetic gaze without blinking.

"What the bloody hell is going on?" James' patience was clearly at its limit. He stared in turn at Lily, Sirius, and Beth and then back to Lily. "Lily, please tell me."

Lily bit her lip. "You were right, James. Severus was dangerous though not exactly to me. He wanted my help to figure out the Sanare Potion so they could use if for the Death Eaters to torture wizards."

James leaped up from the couch. "I'm going to fucking kill him!" he ejaculated. He started towards the door but Sirius' curt voice cut him off. "You can't, Prongs. He doesn't know we know. You'll ruin it if you go after him."

James froze. "What do you mean he doesn't know we know?"

"Sit down, James. Please?" Lily had risen from the couch and she went to James, holding his arm entreatingly. "It's a long story." James stared at her imploring face and nodded. He came back to the couch and sat down, Lily curling up next to him. "Parts of this are going to make you upset, James," Lily began. "Try to stay calm." James nodded again tersely and she started from when she woke up in the morning with a new theory to try for the potion.

For the next half hour, James listened, clenching his fists and glaring stonily in the direction of the Hospital Wing as the narrative unfolded. He jumped up and paced around their couches when she told him what Wilkes had said about giving her a bump on her head, needing to stop her to swear for a few minutes. A harsh look of satisfaction came over his face at Sirius' recounting the odd angle of one of Wilkes' legs after Sirius pushed Wilkes down the stairs. When they finished, Sirius flicked his wand and a punching bag swung gently from the ceiling in front of James as he paced. James spent a few minutes pummeling it, his fist hitting the bag the only sounds in the room. He came back rubbing his knuckles to flop on the couch and closed his eyes, leaning his head against the back of the couch. Lily looked at Sirius and Beth uneasily and then carefully cupped her hand on the side of James' face. "James?" she said softly.

James opened his eyes and stared at Lily. "I'm just trying to take this all in," he told her. He put his arms around her and pulled her on his lap again. "Fuck, Lily, this is going to give me nightmares."

She clung to him. "Me too," she whispered. "I'm sorry I trusted Severus."

"I'm sorry too, love," James said quietly to her. He frowned again, running his hand through his hair in frustration, his voice rising. "I wasn't even there to help you."

"That wasn't your fault," Lily pointed out. "You were keeping an eye on me even though I tried to talk you out of it."

James didn't look convinced. "Are you really alright?" James touched the cut and burn marks on her face. "These look like real injuries."

"They are," Lily admitted. "I guessed Madam Pomfrey would examine me. She'd know if the injuries were faked so I made real ones."

Sirius swore his apology. "Bloody hell Lily. I didn't think of that."

Lily shook her head at him. "Are you kidding? These are minor. I can never thank you enough for all you did." She gestured at Beth and him across the table. "How did you two come to be there in the first place?"

"Beth overheard Snape change your meeting time," Sirius explained. "She got suspicious and came to find me."

Lily gaped at Beth. "Why did that make you suspicious?"

"I don't think you noticed how Snape and Wilkes were watching you in the Great Hall at breakfast," Beth said. "There was something odd about the way they stared. When I heard Snape talk to you later, I thought it was strange he hadn't talked to you at breakfast but made sure you were alone so no one else knew you'd be with him. I knew James was in a meeting with Professor McGonagall so I told Sirius."

Sirius nodded. "It took us awhile to find you. You were in a different classroom than you've worked in before."

Lily frowned. "Yes, Severus told me other students were using the Potions classroom. I just believed him without checking, but who would be in a classroom at 8:00 on a Saturday?"

"You were," Beth pointed out loyally. "Other students may have been working on a project too."

Sirius looked at James. "Prongs, we had to make you think Lily was hurt. We had to use you to make it look believable. I thought you'd go after Snape if you knew the truth."

James swore again but then sighed in agreement. "You were right. I would not have been able to stop myself from pounding his face in or doing more damage with my wand." He looked at Lily ruefully. "I can't hide my feelings when it comes to you, Lil." Lily took his hand and brought it to her lips, her eyes bright.

"You made it work," Sirius said. "Snape, Rosier and McGonagall saw how upset you were about Lily. They know you well enough to know you would have come after them in the heat of the moment if you thought they had tried to hurt her. Snape thinks you don't know about his planned treachery. This way they won't come after Lily to try and force her to tell them how to make the potion. It was lucky for us Rosier didn't show up until we'd set everything up."

James looked disgusted. "Lucky? You think we were lucky?"

Sirius gave James a level stare. "Hell, yes we were lucky. They were overconfident they would only be taking on Lily or they would have had Rosier with Wilkes hiding out in the closet and who knows who else. It was lucky they never caught us checking on Snape and Lily in past meetings, thanks to your invisibility cloak. Snape changed the meeting time and place as a precaution, but overall they were pretty cavalier about how they stole the potion."

James' lips twisted as the impact of Sirius' words sunk in. He reached out to comb his fingers through Lily's hair. "Shit, Lil. My prat of a best mate is right. You could have been all alone with those scurvy Death Eating pricks."

"But I wasn't," Lily reminded him soothingly. "Sirius and Beth were there." She captured his hand with hers and held it against her cheek.

"I was afraid I was going to blow it for us," Beth confessed nervously. "When McGonagall questioned me, I almost panicked."

Sirius nodded. "Actually, you did look upset, but that seemed normal for what we claimed had just happened. You sounded like you were telling the truth."

"What about when Wilkes is found injured?" Lily asked, her lower lip trembling. "Won't that be too much of a coincidence for her to believe?"

There was silence for a minute. Sirius spoke up first. "She'll probably put two and two together and suspect the two _accidents_ might be connected. But she knows Wilkes, Rosier and Snape are in league with the Death Eaters. She won't let on to them." He shook his head ruefully. "McGonagall will be wise enough to let it go."

"You're going to have to tell Snape you can't work with him anymore," James told Lily, his voice harsh.

"I couldn't stand to work with him again," Lily shuddered. "Sirius wisely destroyed the potion instructions. It will be easy to make Severus think it's not worth it to start over with less than we began with after all this."

James shot Sirius a grateful look which Sirius knew encompassed much more than destroying the book. He gave James an understanding look in return and James turned back to cradle Lily tightly again. Beth was watching Sirius, her eyes warm but with a trace of sadness. Sirius kissed her forehead. "I know you'll always miss her," he whispered.

Beth wrapped her arms around him. "Diane would have really liked you," she said, pressing her face against his chest. Sirius closed his eyes against her hair. Now that it was over, Wilkes' words kept revolving through his head making his stomach drop. He had to think it over. His first priority had to be keeping Beth safe.

"We need to leave here fairly soon," Sirius said after allowing Lily and James several minutes to recover. He could feel Beth's warm breath on his neck as he cradled her in his arms. Lily and James were lying together on the couch opposite, Lily's eyes closed while James' stared unseeingly above her head, his face hard. "We can't just disappear all morning. McGonagall will come to check on us and the rumors of the potion exploding are probably already starting."

"I should go by the hospital wing to get the salve for my burns from Madam Pomfrey," Lily untangled herself from James reluctantly.

"I'll take you," James said. "Though I'm not sure I'm ready to see Snape yet."

"Check the map and see where he is before you go," Sirius suggested. "He'll probably be in one of the back beds for observation or will have been released."

"Lily, who is the biggest gossip in Gryffindor?" James asked.

"Amy Allen. She's a sixth year."

"Let's make sure we tell her our version of the potion story right away," James said. "We might as well spread the story the way we want it."

"I'll go find Marlene and ask her to tell Amy," Beth said. "It will seem more natural coming from me as everyone will expect Lily to be upset."

"Peter and Remus are going to Hogsmeade this afternoon with Jerry and Mark. They can spread it to them. Jerry and Mark are Hufflepuffs," Sirius explained to Beth. Beth stood up and reached a hand down to Sirius to help him up. "I'm starving," he said surprised to realize his body still expected food. "I forgot I never had breakfast."

They split up outside the Room of Requirement. "I'll come to the Great Hall after I talk to Marlene," Beth told Sirius. Lily and James left quickly to find Remus and get the map.

Once Beth had started the rumor circulating, she ran down the stairs to find Sirius. She stopped at the entrance to the Great Hall and looked in. It was late morning, early for lunch on a Saturday and the Great Hall was mostly empty. Sirius was sitting a few spots down from some other Gryffindors laughing and chatting, but he was clearly ignoring them as he stared off into the distance tensely. Beth watched him for a minute, a slight discomfort growing in her. It had been a stressful morning and Sirius had been the one who had handled (and handled very well) the skirmish with the Slytherins. Yet he seemed more upset now that it was over than she would have guessed. She walked around the edges of the hall until she was behind him and then ran her hands down his chest as she draped herself over his shoulder. "Hey there," she said close to his ear.

Sirius started in surprise, but relaxed quickly under her hands. Beth's fingers moved up to his shoulders. "How are you holding up?" she asked softly.

Sirius frowned at her as if disgruntled she felt she needed to ask. "I'm fine."

Beth swung onto the bench next to him. "You're a good man to have in a pinch."

Sirius shrugged. "I had the element of surprise. The rest was just basic magic."

Beth shook her head. "No, it was more than that. You figured out quickly what was going on and came up with a workable ruse. You thought out all the angles and covered every base. You will make an excellent Auror. You know how to control your emotions and to do what it takes." Under the table, she captured his hand and held it. Her face was glowing, her eyes bright on his.

Sirius felt his chest grow warm with her words. He ducked his head, slightly embarrassed. "Covered every base?" He seized on the idiom he hadn't heard though it was clear what it meant, not sure how to respond to her praise. Sirius was surprised how much her words meant to him.

"Baseball term," Beth leaned in a little closer to him. "You took care of everything, Sirius." She put her lips close to his ear. "You always take care of me. Is there something I can do to take care of you for a change?"

Sirius' eyes gleamed and his lips angled up. "I might be able to think of a way."

"I give really good massages," Beth smiled at him.

Sirius' smile got wider. "I'll be the judge of that." He stood up and taking her hand, led her upstairs. 

Later that afternoon, Beth and Sirius were sitting entwined on a couch in the Common Room debating each of their country's versions of football.

"American football is way more brutal than soccer," Beth argued. "Why do you think they wear helmets and pounds of pads?"

"That depends on your definition of brutal," Sirius pointed out lazily. He had managed to shove everything to the back of his mind during Beth's massage, and now his body felt relaxed and his muscles loose. He loved winding Beth up and watching her when she argued. Her cheeks were rosy and her eyes flashed at him as she defended one of her favorite sports.

"Full-on tackling being essential to the game is part of my definition," Beth said. She gave Sirius a shove in the shoulder as if this helped illustrate her point.

"Soccer, as you Yanks call it, is more brutal in terms of the players have to be in better shape," Sirius noted. "They have to run non-stop the entire match."

Beth snorted. "Yeah, but they don't sprint full out like many of the football players have to do."

"Football players run for fifteen seconds and then have half a minute to recover between plays," Sirius told her with a matter of fact tone in his voice. "They have more time to rest than they have to play."

"Being tackled or tackling someone also takes its toll on players," Beth said. "It's so demanding physically. You have to –" She stopped when she noticed the gleam of amusement in Sirius' eyes. Beth's eyes narrowed as she stared at him and then she smoothly switched gears. "Why are we arguing about this? They're both demanding sports in different ways. Especially compared to other sports which take far less strength, endurance and agility."

Sirius raised his eyebrows at her. "Like what?" he asked.

"Well, like bowling. Or Quidditch." Beth had to hide her face in Sirius' chest so that he wouldn't see her struggling not to laugh. She hugged him affectionately so he couldn't tell she was concealing her expression.

She felt him stiffen, his entire body suddenly tensed. "Quidditch? What the fuck are you talking about?" Sirius growled.

"You just sit on a broom in Quidditch, right?" With her head down, Beth traced a pattern with her finger on Sirius' chest stifling the urge to look at him and see the palpable outrage on his face that she could hear in his voice. Her lips twitched as she continued, "I mean, your legs aren't even moving. You just lean to change directions. You do have to throw the Quaffle, but it's not even as heavy as a bowling ball."

"You don't just sit! It's more than bloody _leaning_. It takes a good amount of energy and stamina to ride a broom that fast, change directions, swooping up and down." Sirius' voice was rising. "Not to mention throwing the Quaffle while keeping your balance and speed. It's fast-paced and takes coordination and conditioning."

"Most sports take coordination," Beth pointed out factually. "It just doesn't seem Quidditch is as difficult as –"

"I can't believe you put Quidditch alongside bowling." Sirius continued aghast. "That's a sodding ridiculous comparison. Senior citizens have bowling leagues. You don't see 83 year-old ladies playing Quidditch. It's a fierce, com-"

He stopped. Beth was unable to hold back any longer and had clamped her hand over her mouth as she burst out laughing. "83 year-old…" she buried her face in his chest again to suppress her loud guffaws, "la-la-ladies pl-playing Qui—Quidditch!"

Sirius looked down at the top of her head as he felt her entire body shaking with mirth. He rolled Beth to her back and pinned her hands at her sides. "Shit, you're fucking taunting me, aren't you?"

Beth continued to laugh, the corners of her eyes wet. Sirius' eyes gleamed. "Someone needs to be taught a lesson about teasing." He put his face to her stomach, lifting her shirt with his teeth.

Beth squirmed. "No, Sirius! You know how ticklish I am there!" Sirius' mouth was on her bare stomach and she writhed, laughing uncontrollably. "Y—you are s-so m-m-mean!" she managed to pant while cracking up.

"_I'm_ mean?" Sirius stopped to grin down at her. "You purposefully desecrate my sport, and I'm mean?" He let Beth's hands go and pulled her closer to him, dropping a kiss on her forehead.

"I couldn't resist," Beth patted his cheek as if he was a child, her laughter finally subsiding. "You're such an easy target."

"You really love getting a rise out of me, don't you?" Sirius kissed her, running his hands through her hair.

"Just one of my missions in life," Beth's hand made its way down his arm slowly. "Not that it's hard." Her voice became lower.

"I'll show you wha-" Sirius started.

"Hey," James interrupted, grinning at them. "Not that this—" he waved his hand at them "whatever this is- doesn't sound fascinating, but Lily and I are still going to go to Hogsmeade. We're both a bit restless. Are you two coming?"

"No, I don't want to go Hogsmeade," Sirius felt fear at being outside of Hogwarts with Beth. He knew it was irrational, nothing was going to happen now. But he just needed to be alone with her without feeling like he needed to watch over his shoulder after their escapade this morning. "Let's stay in, Beth. I'd rather be alone with you today."

Beth lifted her eyebrows at him. "I can be persuaded," she said silkily. "But I'm out of chocolate."

Sirius shifted to reach in his pocket and threw a bag of coins to James. "I'll owe you, Prongs, if you buy Beth some chocolate."

"Sure," James caught the bag and stuffed it in his pocket. "What do you want, Beth?"

"Lily knows my favorites," Beth was still staring at Sirius. James nodded and left to find Lily. "I thought you'd been looking forward to us going to Hogsmeade," Beth said. "Why the change of heart?"

"I'm feeling base today," Sirius told her. Although it was true (it was always true), he didn't want to tell her how worried Wilkes' threat had made him. "It will be quiet here when most everyone else will be gone." He leaned over to whisper in her ear. "I'll make it worth it."

Beth giggled. "I bet you will." She met his eyes, smiling when he let his eyes sweep over her with an exaggerated leer. Beth batted at his shoulder and then sighed when he dropped his head to the crook of her neck and nuzzled one of her sensitive spots.

By the end of the evening, Beth admitted that he definitely had. It had been a long day, and her eyes fluttered shut as she lay in Sirius' arms. Sirius watched as Beth's eyes closed and her breathing became regular. Her face in repose looked young and fragile. His mind whirled, trying to figure out a way he could keep her safe these last few weeks at Hogwarts. In just a few short months, she had become the most important person in his life. School was almost over. She would be safe once she went back to her muggle world. He clung to that thought every time Wilkes' words repeated in his brain. She had to go home.

Her eyes suddenly opened wide as she woke up from her light doze and she looked surprised when she saw he was staring at her. "Sirius? What's wrong?"

He pushed back the words that rose unbidden to his tongue. "Nothing," he grunted. He tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Go back to sleep, babe."

Beth rolled on top of him and cupped his face with her hands, smiling down at him. "If you insist, we'll have another go. You're insatiable, you know."

Sirius let out a short bark of laughter, letting his worries recede as she started sprinkling kisses on his jaw. "I insist," he said before angling her face so his lips could meet hers.


	23. Summer plans

For the next week, Sirius was jittery, his nerves on edge. "Is something wrong?" Beth asked him more than once, but he laughed it off and shook his head. He and James kept an eagle on a certain trio of Slytherins but there were no suspicious looks or activities directed towards Lily. Snape accepted Lily's decision to terminate their Sanare potion project without argument.

After some effort, Beth persuaded Sirius to go to an inter-house pre-N.E.W.T. party thrown by Ravenclaws to celebrate the upcoming end of the school year on Saturday night. She was looking forward to saying good-bye to many of her Muggle Studies sixth- and seventh-year students there, though the other Marauders and Lily had decided not to go. Beth burst into Sirius' room that afternoon, causing him to drop the notes he'd been studying for his Transfiguration N.E.W.T. He was alone, lounging on his bed and he raised an eyebrow at Beth when he saw how excited she was.

"Sirius!" she exclaimed almost running across the room. "Oh shit. I didn't knock, did I? I'm sorry, I wasn't even thinking." She was staring at him as she spoke and for the first time he remembered he wasn't wearing a shirt and his sheets were pulled up around his hips.

"It's okay," he grinned at her. "I'm decent." He pushed aside his sheet so that she could see his pants. Beth smiled at him almost shyly and when she was within his reach, his arm snaked out and grabbed her bringing her down on the bed beside him. Beth kicked off her shoes and then snuggled in close to him, draping her arms around his chest.

"What's got you in such a hurry?" he asked his lips close to her ear. She looked even more beautiful than usual, her eyes sparkling with elation and she fit into his arms as if meant to be there.

"I'm going to stay with Lily this summer," Beth exclaimed with a blinding smile. "We can be with each other!" She hugged Sirius not noticing the panic that flared in his eyes at her words.

"Wh-what?" he stuttered. "I thought you were traveling with a friend around the continent before you went home." His heart sped up and he grappled with the blinding fear caused by her words.

"I'd rather be able to see you. Lily and James too, of course," Beth smiled against his bare chest. "I know you are going to be fighting in the wizard war. I'm going to lay low. I'll take a college course by correspondence, but at least I'll be available whenever you have any free time."

"It could be dangerous," Sirius was having trouble thinking clearly. He felt torn, fear for Beth fighting with happiness he could be with her for months longer.

"I'll be careful," Beth said starting to kiss his chest. "We won't tell anyone I'm here. I won't go out with you when you're doing any wizard work." Her lips were moving up his body and had reached his neck.

Sirius gulped. He couldn't think when she was touching him like this. "Beth, we have to talk about this," he managed to croak. He swallowed with difficulty trying to figure out how he could dissuade her from this absurd plan.

"Later," Beth had reached his jaw. Her lips were soft and inviting and he groaned.

"I don't want—" Sirius tried again. Beth's mouth swallowed his words and he kissed her back, his mouth desperate with longing and need. He longed to let her stay as long as she could—to have every minute together possible- but he needed to make sure she would be safe.

It took all his willpower but he pulled away. "Beth, listen—"

"Sirius," Beth breathed. "Can't we talk about it later? Please?"

Sirius stared down at her. Her cheeks were rosy, her lips parted and slightly swollen. Her eyes, on his, were bright with happiness and desire. One of her hands was moving in circles on his chest making his heart speed up from desire even as he tried to slow down his mind so he could marshal his thoughts. Beth took his silence as acquiescence and her lips returned to his, her other hand sliding around to the nape of his neck and running through his hair. Sirius wrapped one arm strongly around her back and hauled her closer. It could wait he decided. He could put off for a little longer telling her she had to leave.

But later when they lay spent, limbs tangled and breathing slowly returning to normal, Sirius struggled to find the words to convince her.

"It's not safe for you to stay," he rumbled when she parried his opening argument that she must be missing her family after so long away.

"I'll be fine," she returned. "Sirius, hardly anyone will even know I'm here."

"There's a war going on," Sirius said his voice low. "It's not even safe for wizards these days." He forced himself to keep his voice calm which was becoming more difficult with each passing minute.

"I'm not a witch," Beth reminded him unnecessarily. "No one cares if I'm here because I don't have a part in this."

"Normally that would be true. Because of your relationship with me, you do have a part in this." Sirius glared at Beth but she refused to back down, meeting his eyes with her own frown.

"The Death Eaters aren't going to worry about your girlfriend who can't even fight," Beth said fiercely, her eyebrows drawn together. "I'll fly under the radar."

"It's my sodding family who worry me," Sirius swore. "Remember their bloody pureblood mentality?"

"Your family won't even know I'm here," Beth protested. "I'll be just one of Lily's muggle friends staying with her over the summer."

"My _brother_ knows about you," he said sharply. Hadn't she been paying any attention during that touching little reunion he'd had with Reg?

An obstinate look came over Beth's face. Sirius often forgot how unyielding Beth could be when she set her heart on something because she was normally very easygoing, but she was downright tenacious when she felt she needed to be. He knew her many academic and athletic successes were due to that dogged persistence and his heart sank when he saw that expression on her face.

"I'll regret it for the rest of my life if I leave now," she told him, her mouth firm.

"What if I'll regret it for the rest of my life if I let you stay?" he retorted, his fear making him angrier.

Beth swung her feet to the floor and started pulling on her clothes jerkily. "I have to go," she muttered. Beth usually moved quickly and now she was exceptionally fast, her clothes were on haphazardly before he could decide what to say to persuade her without making her madder.

He could see she was hurt and he reached out an arm to grab hers. "Beth—"

But Beth pulled her arm away and headed for the door, flinging it open and stomping out. He wanted to go after her but instead he swung his own legs to the floor and swore.

He knew Beth. She wouldn't give in easily. She had decided this would happen and she would soon be telling him it was her decision, not his. He dropped his head in his hands, thinking. He had to convince her that she couldn't stay. But how?

Sirius paced his round room until he felt dizzy. Beth had to stay safe. To do that, she had to go home. He needed his brother to know that Beth was not going to be a part of his life after he left Hogwarts. He felt sick, his stomach churning as he fought his longing to let her stay. He flopped on his bed despondently.

After a long time torturing himself with possible scenarios, his mind was made up. It would be the hardest thing he'd ever done in his life but he was sure it would force her to go home. He got up, his feet leaden, and started getting ready for the party.

Two hours later, Sirius saw the top of Beth's head coming towards him through the throngs of garrulous students at the party and he bent his own head to whisper intimately into Janice's ear making sure he played the part convincingly. He couldn't stop himself from looking up after a minute and he met Beth's eyes. It felt like someone had kicked him in the stomach when he saw her face. The beautiful, bright effervescent light that was inside her had been suddenly switched off. Her dazzling, ready smile had disappeared, the happy light in her eyes was extinguished. Her eyes briefly looked into his before sliding away. She didn't try to hide her devastation, she didn't come and yell at him, she didn't try to fight, she just turned to leave. Sirius dropped the arm that had been carefully placed around Janice precisely so Beth would see. She'd seen alright. His plan had worked. He just hadn't expected his chest to hurt so much when he saw her reaction. He gloomily watched Beth's slumped shoulders as she walked away.

Beside him, Janice was silent for a minute. "Wow," she said. "She handled that well. No fighting or arguing."

Sirius swallowed, trying to keep his voice level and unaffected. "Yeah, she shuts down when she's upset." It hurt to even say it, knowing he was the one who'd kicked her in the teeth.

"She must not have known something was wrong between you," Janice continued. "She looked shocked."

"I guess she didn't." Sirius forced himself to keep up this farce instead of following Beth. At least he had laid the groundwork well with Janice. He had explained to her while waiting for Beth that he needed to be free, the relationship was choking him. What was really choking him was the thought of a life without Beth. He could hardly speak past the lump in his throat.

Janice smiled at him. "Can I get you a butterbeer?" He nodded and she sidled away.

For the next half-hour, Sirius tried to act attentive and interested in Janice. In reality, he barely heard a word she said. His mind followed Beth to her room where he imagined her curled in the fetal position, her tears soaking her pillow. He spotted Reg once watching him curiously. Fortunately, Sirius was the only Gryffindor at this party. He wouldn't have been able to pull it off if any of the Marauders or Lily had been there.

He couldn't keep this up any longer. "I just remembered, I agreed to meet James," Sirius told Janice abruptly.

"What?" Janice swiped an arm at him as he started to leave. "I thought we were going to-"

"Sorry, I'm late," Sirius snapped at her as he walked away. He turned on his heel and walked outside, a feeling of doom settling in his chest.

He'd done the right thing, hadn't he? Beth had to know they couldn't be together. There was no happily ever after, no future for them together. He had no choice. He walked moodily around the grounds. His feet automatically took him to the semi-dark pond and he stared across it. Images of his animated Beth showing him how to tread water, laughing at his jokes, looking at him with barely concealed longing swam through his mind. Not his Beth anymore, he reminded himself with a stab of remorse. He went back inside and up the marble stairs to Gryffindor Tower ignoring the friendly calls from others wandering away from the party.

As Sirius flung himself on his bed, jerking the curtains around his bedpost shut, he just wished he could get the image of her stunned face out of his mind. He could still smell her on his sheets and he groaned when he thought of her wide, beautiful smile when she'd come into his room this afternoon, so eager to tell him her news. He hadn't known it would hurt this much.

As much as he tried to stop himself, he was up early the next morning peering at the Marauder's Map to see where she was. He just had to see her, he rationalized, to make sure she was okay. When he saw her dot with her name leave her room, he gave her a few minutes to get a little distance ahead and then followed. He expected her to go to the Great Hall for breakfast but her dot turned to go outside when she reached the Entrance Hall. Sirius followed a little more quickly.

She wasn't going to the pond to swim, was she? Her dot moved at a fast clip towards said pond. No one was with her to warm the water and it the pond was still bitterly cold this time of year. What if she got a cramp in the chilly water? Realistically, Sirius knew Beth would not have any problems swimming by herself in the pond. He was too overwrought to think clearly and he latched onto any excuse to go to her to make sure she was alright. Sirius was running by the time he reached the Entrance Hall. He got outside just as he saw her dot go into the pond. He stuffed the map in his pocket and sprinted. He could now see her head as she came up and started swimming. Her strokes were choppy and fast but her good form was still apparent.

Sirius went to the edge of the pond and took out his wand. He warmed the water and sank down on the grass next to her towel and bag, watching her head and arms determinedly ploughing through the water.

Beth must have noticed the water was warmer but she swam for over an hour as Sirius watched before she gracefully walked towards him through the shallow water at the edge of the pond. The morning was chilly despite the sun, and Sirius saw the goose bumps on her body as she exited the water and her damp skin met the cold air. She recoiled slightly when she spotted him and he felt a fresh wave of pain and remorse wash over him. He silently handed her the towel he had found waiting, now warmed by his wand. She nodded her thanks and buried her face in the towel, scrubbing it through her wet hair and wiping all of the water droplets from her face before settling the towel around her shoulders.

Sirius searched her face as Beth busied herself pulling sweats from her bag. She was avoiding his eyes and her face looked shuttered, her eyes slightly swollen. Sirius already missed her usual lively expression, her warm smile and ready banter. He cleared his throat awkwardly, hoping she'd speak or at least look at him. She chose that moment to pull her sweatshirt over her head, fluffing her hair out of the collar as she finished. She slipped her feet into her sandals and reached for her bag.

"You're not supposed to swim alone," his voice rasped. Beth stopped and stared at him blankly. "It doesn't matter how good a swimmer you are, anyone can get a muscle cramp."

"_That's _what you're worried about?" her voice was quiet, void of all emotion. He'd never heard that voice before. She turned and started trudging off.

Sirius jumped up. "I did it because I didn't want you to get hurt later," his voice rang out after her. He cringed at the inanity of the words even as he spoke.

She stopped but didn't turn around. "Well, that worked out well." She didn't wait for his reply, walking swiftly away.


	24. Even then

After Beth left, Sirius sat deep in thought. His head ached and his thoughts went around and around in circles wearily. He couldn't sit still, inactive, any longer. With one last despairing look at Beth's name on the Marauder's Map now moving up the staircase to the girls' dorm in Gryffindor Tower, Sirius jumped up to go inside.

Sirius flung open the heavy door to enter the castle and almost collided with another wizard. He didn't even bother to look at who it was, just stepped around him with an oath.

"Watch where the hell you're going, Sirius." Regulus' voice startled Sirius and he froze in his tracks.

"Shut the fuck up," Sirius snarled. A few good punches thrown at his brother might make him feel better right about now and his face must have showed it.

Regulus shook his head. "I'm not the enemy here, you ponce." He paused and stared at Sirius with a brooding look. "I know you staged that break-up with your girlfriend at the party because of me."

Sirius couldn't hide the shock of his brother's words. He opened his mouth to deny it, but Regulus held up a hand.

"I saw how you looked at her. She wasn't a fling." Regulus said flatly. "It's not that hard to figure out. You were scared shitless when I saw you with her by the pond and you refused to introduce us. And I can see how upset you are even though you were the one who dumped her by being with another girl. You're a lot more transparent than you realize," Regulus' eyes were shrewd. "At least to me."

Sirius turned his head away as he searched his mind for a plausible excuse but he came up empty.

"Look, I know you think I'm scum." Regulus' voice was clipped. "But I'm not that much of a bastard. I would not drag an innocent girl into our fucked up family issues." Sirius' head whipped around and he stared at his brother, stunned. "It's no secret I think you're an idiot, Sirius. You gave up your family for your stupid beliefs. But she doesn't have anything to do with this."

Sirius stared at his brother incredulously. "You won't tell mum—or Bellatrix?"

"Fuck no," Reg sounded annoyed. "I won't tell anyone about her even after we leave Hogwarts. I wouldn't sic our freak cousin Bellatrix on someone outside of this war." His mouth twisted. "Your little muggle secret is safe with me."

Sirius frowned. "Wilkes warned me to watch my back outside of Hogwarts. He said there were rumors about our Gryffindor secret. I thought he was threatening me that you were going to rat me out to our family."

"He wasn't talking about your muggle girlfriend," Regulus said, glaring at Sirius as if he was too thick to believe. "There is a rumor that one of the Marauders is a werewolf. Wilkes doesn't give a shit who your girl is, he thinks it just proves what a tosser you are to care about a muggle. But if he finds out who the werewolf is, he'll hold that over your heads or get him kicked out of Hogwarts."

Sirius looked at Regulus in disbelief. "Why are you telling me this?"

Regulus stared at him for a long moment, his expression unreadable. "You really like to think in extremes, don't you? I know it's easier for you to think of me that way, but I'm not evil." He turned and strode away without looking back.

Sirius sunk his face into his hands and groaned. The Common Room was loud with groups of students playing games, chatting or studying in various parts of the room. Sirius had commandeered two small couches set in the corner and had only had to glare a few times to chase away anybody foolhardy enough to approach him.

He had the Marauder's Map although he really didn't need it now. Beth had been hiding in her room ever since she'd come back to Gryffindor Tower after her early morning swim. He didn't know what he could do but he needed to know where she was.

James and Remus came loping down the boy's staircase, chatting like the carefree prats they were, Sirius thought irritably. James spotted him and bounded over, Remus close behind. "Hey Sirius," James started. He stopped when he got a closer look at Sirius' face. "What's up?" he asked, frowning in concern.

"This probably won't surprise you, but I fucked up with Beth." Sirius rubbed his eyes. He hadn't slept much last night. As tired as he was, he suspected he wouldn't sleep tonight either if he didn't get to see Beth.

"What did you do?" True to Sirius' comment, James didn't sound surprised, just matter of fact. Although to Sirius' credit, he recognized that James always knew how to handle him when he was the most upset. James kept his voice on an even keel and sat down on the couch next to Sirius. Sirius had been acting edgy the last week and James had suspected something was up with him and Beth.

"Shit, Sirius. Tell us." Remus flopped down on the opposite couch. In contrast to James, his voice sounded like a warning. Sirius reflected that Remus must have overestimated him if he had at all not seen this coming.

"I wanted to show her we wouldn't work," he started, "that she couldn't stay with me this summer."

"Bloody hell." James cut him off, his usual patience missing. "You did something idiotic, didn't you? Why didn't you just talk to her?"

"Let him finish, James." Sirius' eyes flashed to Remus when he heard how pissed Remus' voice was. Sirius wasn't surprised, he knew Remus and Beth were good friends. "Then we can beat the git for being a prick."

Sirius sighed heavily. "Yeah, I deserve it. I don't know what I was thinking. Hell, no one knows what I was thinking. I crushed her. She won't even look at me now." He inwardly cursed himself for not trying to talk to Beth again before the party. He should have forced her to listen instead of trying to drive her away.

James and Remus exchanged a weighted look. "You've haven't said what you did," James pointed out.

"I pretended I was with another girl to show her that it's over, that we can't be together." Sirius winced as he spoke, remembering Beth's face.

"You fucking piece of scum," Remus growled. Sirius flinched at his tone, staring at his feet. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"You know I suck at relationships, right?" Sirius looked up and met Remus' cold stare. "I've never cared about a girl this way before. I don't know what the hell I'm doing."

"That's your bloody excuse? That you've never cared before?" Remus jumped up and paced a few steps away and then turned back. "That's a first for everyone at some point, Sirius. That doesn't mean you can just do whatever the hell you want."

"It wasn't what I _want_!" Sirius was finally feeling angry. The anger felt good, it helped push his dejection away. "I want her!"

"Then why are you pushing her away?" James was trying to keep his voice from sounding accusatory. He knew Sirius was judging himself harsher than his friends could. He also knew how much Sirius cared about Beth.

"There's no possibility of a future. I was trying to protect her. I know, stupid." Sirius couldn't look at his best mates anymore. For the umpteenth time, he thought that if he had gone to talk to Reg first before dumping Beth none of this would have happened. But he hadn't voluntarily approached his brother in two years and it hadn't even crossed his mind that Reg might have decided to keep Beth out of their family issues.

"Why can't you have a future with her?" Remus asked his voice grim. "Is it because she is a muggle? Is she not good enough for you?"

Sirius' eyes flashed in anger and his fists clenched. "Of course she's good enough for me!" He wearily leaned back against the couch as the fight drained out of him. "It's also because she's a muggle. The wizard world is in a war. My sodding family is on a different side than me." Sirius glared at James and Remus in turn as if it were their fault. "You know how mental my family is. Beth wanted to stay here this summer to be with me. I didn't think it was safe for her to be with me outside of Hogwarts."

There was a long pregnant silence. James put his hand on Sirius' shoulder. "Sorry, Padfoot," he said slowly. "But I'm pretty sure it's an understatement to say it hurt her more that you made it look like you cheated."

"How you two handle this should be her choice too," Remus argued. "You need to let her have a say."

"There's more," Sirius told them. "Wilkes told me there are rumors about the Gryffindor secret and to watch my back outside of Hogwarts. I wanted my brother to know I broke up with Beth so she would be safe from my family, from Bellatrix."

James looked at Sirius sympathetically. "Did you ever think Wilkes was just trying to fuck with your head, Sirius, by warning you to watch out?"

Sirius grimaced. "No, he wasn't trying to fuck with my head but he managed anyway."

"What are you talking about?" Remus spat out. His eyes were narrowed at Sirius in anger.

"I ran into my brother this morning." Sirius admitted. "Reg told me Wilkes wasn't warning me about Beth when he said to watch out outside of Hogwarts. Someone suspects one of us is a werewolf."

Remus swore and looked away, his mouth grim. "Shit," James exclaimed. "How did they find out?"

"I don't know," Sirius answered wearily. "Reg also said he won't rat me out. He won't tell our family about Beth. I hurt Beth for nothing." He paused and repeated the worst part. "I really hurt her."

There was a short silence. Sirius rubbed his burning eyes again.

"We can figure out what to do about Remus' furry little problem later. We can lie low in the Shrieking Shack our last full moon here." James finally said. "Now, you need to talk to Beth."

"Think of how you'd feel if you were in her situation, not being told all of what was going on." Remus pointed out, his voice no longer angry. Sirius looked up at Remus and saw the understanding on his face laced with guilt. Remus always took the responsibility of any negative consequences any of them suffered due to him being a werewolf. Remus knew Wilkes' words had pushed Sirius into breaking up with Beth and he partially blamed himself.

"It's not your fault," Sirius said shortly to Remus. Much as misery loved company, he couldn't let Remus share the culpability for what he'd done to Beth.

"I'll feel better if you fix it," Remus replied darkly.

Sirius hung his head. He hadn't even told Beth how he felt about her or the full story on his family. She deserved his honesty and consideration. It might be all he had left to give her. "I know," he said. "I want her to stay with me. I want to be with her as long as I can. But I don't know if she'll even speak to me after what I did."

"Do what you have to do," James said calmly. He'd never seen Sirius like this before and he hoped Beth would have it in her to understand and forgive him.

Sirius nodded keeping his head down. His mind wearily brought up Beth's stunned face again.

Remus pointed to the map. "Can I have that later, Padfoot? I need it tonight."

"I'll get it to you after dinner," Sirius said. He doubted it would help him today. Beth was unlikely to leave her dorm if she didn't want to talk to him, but it gave him a small feeling of security when he could see where she was. After another long look and a clasp on the shoulder from James, James and Remus left him to his lonely vigil and he prepared himself for a long day.

The next morning, Beth didn't come down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Sirius finally gave up waiting outside of the hall door and went to Arithmancy. James looked at Beth's empty seat when he arrived. "Still avoiding you?" he asked Sirius.

"Apparently," Sirius slouched in his seat. Beth had stayed in her room all day on Sunday, aided by Lily who brought her food and glared at Sirius when he begged her for information. Lily did pass on his notes to Beth asking if they could talk but he seriously doubted she even read them as there was no response. Sirius figured Beth would come out eventually and he would have to persuade her to talk to him.

When class started, Beth wasn't there. Sirius looked around the classroom and spotted her in the back row next to Nicholas Hench, a Hufflepuff. He hurried back to talk to her before Professor Venn started his lecture. "Beth, can I-"

"Later," Beth interrupted tersely. She wouldn't look at him, staring towards the front of the class where Venn was now standing. Her face still had that uncharacteristically closed expression but he noticed that her lower lip slightly trembled. It was the vulnerability displayed by that lip that made Sirius back down. He knew Beth was hanging onto her control by a slim thread. He didn't want to cause her to lose it publicly. He clenched his fists in frustration as he stalked off, managing to make Nicholas flinch and his eyes to widen with one good glare. When Venn finished his lecture, Sirius turned around just in time to see Beth slip out the door. He was pretty sure he'd be rebuffed if he chased her down so he swore and slammed down his fist on the desk in annoyance.

"Hang in there, mate." James said under his breath. "Here," he handed Sirius the Marauder's Map which Remus and Peter had needed the night before. "Remus gave me this back before class."

Sirius muttered his thanks as he slipped it into his pocket. He felt sick, his hands were clammy and his stomach felt tied up in knots. He forced himself to be patient. He couldn't explain to Beth if she wasn't willing to listen.

Sirius looked hopefully to the front of the classroom when he got to Muggle Studies later. Beth had holed up in her room during her free period after Arithmancy. The Marauder's Map had shown she was walking this direction the last chance he'd been able to check it before entering the classroom. Beth wasn't there yet and he slid into his seat. Sirius kept an eye on the door, eagerly sitting up each time it was opened only to sink back in disappointment when he saw it wasn't her. James eyed him sympathetically but did not try to talk to him for which Sirius was grateful.

Professor Tedison stepped up the front of the class. "Ms. Peterson could not make it today," he started. Several members of the class groaned and Sirius felt his heart sink. "I'm sure she'll be back next week. Today, we'll be going over your exams from last week." Tedison continued, ignoring another louder groan. He indicated a large stack of papers in front of him. "In the spirit of muggles, I was trying to use staples to attach the exam sheets together. Unfortunately, the stapler jammed and so the exam papers are all separated. I'll be calling—"

Sirius stopped listening to Tedison's monotone drone. He had to see Beth and he couldn't wait any longer.

"Cover for me," Sirius said out of the side of his mouth to James. James' lips turned up and he nodded grimly. James held his wand under their desk and aimed at the front of the room. He shot out a spell and the window behind Tedison's desk opened, a gust of cool wind coming in the room. The exam papers swirled up, aided and abetted by another spell from James. Sirius edged back to the door as Tedison called, "The exams! Help me grab them!" Students laughed but obligingly rushed around the classroom, trying to catch the loose papers. Sirius opened the door and slipped out as James helped turn Tedison's eyes away by making the wind lift several papers around and behind Tedison. As Tedison turned away, one paper wrapped itself around Tedison's face, momentarily blinding him. The door gently closed behind Sirius.

He found her sitting on the bench overlooking the pond. She didn't turn around when he stood beside her. "Beth, can we talk?" His voice was gravelly. "Please?"

She turned to stare at him and he felt as if she'd knocked the wind out of him. Her eyes were dry but they looked so..…defeated, so bereft. He held his breath while she considered. His shoulders sagged with relief when she nodded and he sat down next to her.

"I didn't cheat on you," he started. "I set up that scene with Janice so you would see."

"I figured that out," Beth replied. Her voice was flat and guarded. "You're a fucking coward, Black."

She said it without heat but he flinched. "More than you know," he answered honestly. Beth gave him a look of surprise and he reached out to take her hand but dropped his hand awkwardly between them, afraid she would pull away.

"I decided to end our relationship because I was scared." He looked out over the pond to avoid her eyes while he tried to work out how to tell her. He could feel the weight of her stare on his face. Some part of his mind told him to _look _at her when he said it, so he turned his head and met her eyes again.

"I'm in love with you." He saw the shock hit her as he said it. Her mouth dropped open and her breath sped up. She sat frozen, her wide eyes glued to his. "I've known for some time but held back from telling you. Knowing we only had a short time together made it hard for me to acknowledge it out loud. I thought it would make it more real if I said it. I'm a bloody idiot, obviously."

He continued, determined to finally let her know what she meant to him. "I'm so crazy about you, Beth. Each time after we were together, I always watched you when you fell asleep." He grimaced apologetically. "Sorry, that sounded creepy." He paused and a softened look came to his eyes as he gazed at her. "When I watched you, I thought about how happy I am with you. I counted down the days I had left to spend with you. This is the first time in my life I've dreaded the end of my school years."

Beth opened her mouth to ask the obvious question but he forestalled her. "I know it doesn't make any sense I would end this when you said you wanted to stay with me longer. I did it because I was afraid you would be hurt because of me."

Beth frowned and he clenched his jaw as he brought up his family. "I haven't told you everything about my family. I know you thought I exaggerated when I told you how much they hate me." He stared past her, his eyes stony. "If anything, I softened it for you. I didn't want to frighten you away."

He sighed, trying consciously to relax his tense muscles. "They are prejudiced purebloods who see the world in black and white. Purebloods are good, muggleborns are bad. End of story. When I disagreed with their views, we fought ferociously. I realized I couldn't change them or live with them anymore. When I was 16, I ran away from home and went to James' home. The Potters took me in. My dear mother reacted like other loving mothers would." He stared at Beth without seeing her for a second. "She burned my likeness and name from our family tree and made sure my brother sent me a picture."

Beth flinched and for the first time since he'd intruded on her, Sirius saw sympathy come to her eyes. "My brother and I were very close when we were young. You saw how much love and warmth there is between us now."

Beth looked sickened and he continued, wanting her to fully understand. "But it's not my immediate family I'm afraid of except that they would tell our extended family about us. I have cousins. One of them in particular, is fucking mental."

Sirius twisted his hands together. "Bellatrix is not only one of Voldemort's biggest fans, she despises me. In her view, I had everything: a noble family, heir to a fortune, _pure_ blood. Not only did I throw it all away, I've actively and openly fought against everything they stand for. I'm the blood traitor and I'm trying to destroy our family honor. To get to me, not only will she have no compunction about hurting you, she'll relish the chance. Beth, she'd torture you and laugh knowing it would kill me. You wouldn't have to do anything to be her target, just being my girlfriend and a muggle would be enough reason for Bellatrix to come after you."

Beth looked away, stunned. She swallowed convulsively. Sirius felt another wash of remorse and he spoke quickly. "I'm sorry. I was a selfish prick when I started this relationship with you. I've always been a risk taker. I felt you were safe at Hogwarts and I convinced myself it would be alright if we were together while we are here."

"It was my choice too," Beth reminded him. Her voice was raw and shaken. "I am safe here."

"I thought so too," Sirius nodded. "But I got more worried after that run-in between Lily and Snape and Wilkes."

Beth looked puzzled. "What did that have to do with me?"

"It doesn't," Sirius said. "I don't know if you heard but Wilkes told me there were rumors going around about the secret we were hiding in Gryffindor. He warned me we were not safe outside of Hogwarts. I was sure he was referring to you. It terrified me, Beth."

Beth bit her lip. "And then I made it worse for you by telling you I wanted to stay with you over the summer and not listening to you."

Sirius nodded. "It sent me into panic mode. I wasn't able to think clearly." His hands tightened into fists involuntarily. "I chose Janice to pretend to be interested in at the party for a reason. She's the best friend of my brother's girlfriend. I decided to publicly break up with you so that word would get out to my brother. I thought that would ensure he wouldn't think about you in relation to me when term is over. He wouldn't tell Bellatrix or my mum about you if we were finished.

"You have no idea how excited I was at the idea of you staying with me over the summer, Beth. I'd give anything to have more time with you. But I thought I had to give you up. I couldn't be with you if it was at the expense of your safety."

Beth's eyes were haunted but no longer cool as she looked at Sirius. He gulped and decided to press his advantage. "I want to be with you Beth, as long as possible. I know I fucked up and I hurt you. I know I'm an idiot. If you'll take me back, I'll make the most of every minute we have together." He picked up her hand and held it in his, his eyes pleading in a way she'd never seen before. "I love you, Beth. I don't want it to end like this."

"What made you change your mind?" she asked carefully. She was trying to guard her face but he could see hurt, doubt and fear in her eyes.

"I ran into my brother yesterday." Sirius rubbed Beth's knuckles gently with his thumb. "Apparently I royally underestimated him. He knows I set up the break-up with you." Beth looked disconcerted as Sirius grimaced and continued. "He also told me he wouldn't tell anyone in our family about you. He said he's not that kind of a bloke." Sirius paused and looked at Beth. "I was wrong about Wilkes' warning according to Reg. That was about-someone else, not you." Beth frowned but did not interrupt him to ask further about that for which he was grateful.

"I believe him. At least Reg and I have always been honest with each other." He moved over a little closer to her and brought her hand to his lips. Her hand felt smooth and cold. He longed to take her in his arms and hold her. "I don't know if it's enough for you. I know I…I hurt you and broke your trust. I'm so sorry I did that, Beth. If you want we can have the summer together."

Tears swam up in Beth's eyes. One spilled over and slowly ran down her cheek. Sirius felt his stomach drop in tandem with that one tear. "I don't know," she said forlornly. "I need to think about this."

He nodded trying not to feel despair. He hadn't expected more but a tiny part of him had hoped she'd forgive him on the spot. "Okay," he choked out. He squeezed her hand before carefully setting it back on her lap as if it was fragile and got up to leave.

"I wish I could promise never to hurt you again," he looked down at her bent head. "I can't do that. This war is already ripping my world apart. There are a lot of things I won't have control over." Beth looked up at him, her eyes frightened. Sirius continued his voice hoarse. "I can promise I will always love you and will look out for you. I'll tell you when it's not safe instead of hurting you to try and force you to go away. But I will make you leave when I think it's too dangerous. I may be a risk taker but there are some things too important to risk." He turned and walked away quickly leaving her staring after him.

Sirius slouched on the couch in the Common Room, his eyes shut. He hadn't seen Beth since he talked to her by the pond and with every passing minute, he felt more afraid she couldn't forgive him. Not that he could blame her, he'd fucked everything up by betraying her trust.

He heard the sound of someone approaching and looked up hopefully. It was just James and Lily and disappointment settled back on his face as they sat down across from him.

"Did you talk to Beth?" James asked. His expression had more empathy than Sirius was able to face.

"Yeah," Sirius replied. "She said she has to think."

James and Lily looked at each other. "Are you still worried about your family finding out about her?" Lily asked. Sirius noticed her voice was sympathetic instead of pissed at him now. James must have explained Sirius' warped reasoning to her.

"Not as much," Sirius admitted. "Now that I know Reg won't tell my family."

"Shit," James exclaimed. "I'm sorry, Padfoot."

"I'm an idiot," Sirius answered despairingly, closing his eyes again. He was so tired. Everything hurt. "I don't know if Beth will be able to trust me again."

There was a short silence. Sirius could feel James and Lily looking at each other trying to think of what to say.

"Hold on, mate," James finally said. "Do you want to be alone?"

He just nodded and he heard the sounds of them standing up and moving away and then returning. He didn't bother to open his eyes this time, just waited for one of them to speak. He was startled when a warm body dropped on his lap and arms circled his neck. "Okay if I join you?" Beth's voice was low and hoarse in his ear.

Sirius' eyes sprang open and his arms closed around her. "Beth!" He clasped her tightly, the weight that had lodged in his chest miraculously dissolving. For a long minute, he just held her, relief coursing through his body, his heart leaping. He felt her press up against him, her face lodged in the crook of his neck, her breath warm on his skin. The hollow feeling in his stomach was gone. His arms felt right again now that she was in them.

"Are you sure you still want to be with me?" Sirius didn't want to break the moment, but he had to know. He kept her enfolded in his arms, afraid to look at her face until she answered.

"Yes, I'm sure." It was Beth who leaned her head back so she could meet his eyes. "Losing my best friend taught me there are no guarantees in life. You need to treasure every moment you have with the people you love."

Sirius couldn't have stopped his smile if he wanted to. "People you love?" his voice was low.

"Yes." Beth said softly, her eyes blazing at his. "I love you, Sirius. I'm going to make the most of every minute I have with you."

"Even when I'm an overprotective, fucked-up prick?" he asked.

"Even then," her smile was radiant.

Sirius' lips found hers and he kissed her, his mouth both passionate and desperate. "I love you so much, Beth." He cupped her face and stared into her eyes, his expression fierce. It felt so good to be able to openly say it. He'd never hold back telling her how he felt about her again.

"I love you, too." Beth's eyes were full of tears again, but this time they were tears of happiness. Sirius tightened his arms and tucked her head into his shoulder again. For a long time, he just held her, allowing contentment to flood his body. He felt Beth sigh as she wilted against him.

After several minutes, Sirius stirred and Beth straightened up to meet his eyes. Her eyes were bright but Sirius could see dark smudges of weariness underneath them. Guilt shot through him and his own eyes became bitter. "Beth, I'm sorry. I purposefully picked the most painful way to convince you we were over. I can't believe how much I hurt the person I love the most."

"It was moronic," Beth agreed, her eyes belying her words. "But you did it to protect me. I know you had my best interests at heart."

"You said it was unforgiveable when that prat of a boyfriend cheated on you. How were you able to forgive me?" Sirius asked, desperate for reassurance.

"I figured out pretty quickly that you didn't cheat. I know you, Sirius. You're loyal, blunt and straight-forward. If you no longer wanted to be with me because you wanted to be with someone else, you would have told me." Beth put her small hand on his chest over his racing heart.

"But you avoided me," Sirius said, his voice raw. Even though she had good reasons, that had unnerved him. "You hid from me and wouldn't talk to me."

"It still hurt," Beth explained. "Although I realized there was something else going on, I wasn't sure why you would want to break up with me like that. I was afraid you had decided you didn't want me to stay this summer because you didn't want me enough anymore."

Sirius frowned. "What do you mean enough?"

"Enough to put up with the extra worry because I'm not a witch," Beth looked anxious again as she admitted it. She looked down unable to meet his eyes. "I know I'll be a burden to you when you're involved in the war. I thought you wanted me to go because you didn't care enough for me to stay with you."

Sirius felt another rush of tenderness for her swamp him. He lifted her chin with his finger until she lifted her eyes to meet his. "I know it's my fault but that's the most ridiculous thing you've ever said," he said savagely, eyes glittering. "I want you so much, it was killing me to try and persuade you to go away. If it weren't for this fucking war and my bloody family, I would have been begging you to stay with me. But I can't let you be hurt or killed because of me."

Beth blinked. Her face filled with emotion and she moved a shaky hand to run through his hair. "I'll only be hurt in this war if you are," she said her throat thick. "I don't ever want to lose you, Sirius."

"I'm not planning on being killed in this sodding war," Sirius said confidently. Beth stared at him worriedly. How could he be so confident about his own safety while being so concerned about hers? She knew better than to argue with him. She would have to be very careful when trying to influence him.

"So we have the same problem," she said quietly. "We both are more concerned about each other's safety than our own."

"True," Sirius conceded. "But it's my fight, Beth. I have to be a part of this. I have to stand up for what I believe in. It's not your fight."

"I wish it were," Beth said sadly. "I wish I could help."

"You help me," Sirius ran his hands in large circles on her back. "You make me happy. Before you, I never knew how full and rich life could be. You mean so much to me, Beth. As long as I know you're well and safe, I can bear anything."

Beth sighed. "I know there are things you don't tell me to protect me, Sirius. Next time, talk to me more." She put her hand against his cheek. "Even if I…distract you or don't seem to listen, try again. I might take some convincing, but I'll eventually get there. Just keep at me."

Sirius grinned, his heart lighter. "Oh, I plan to keep at you alright."

Beth laughed. "So you're already back to being base."

"You love it," he kissed her passionately.

"I never said I was at a higher level," Beth murmured against his mouth and he chuckled as he pressed his lips to hers again.

"Tell me the plans for our summer," Sirius eventually spoke, threading his hands through her hair. The play of emotions running across her face brought a bigger smile to his own.

"Lily and James found two available apartments right next to each other. James is going to create a temporary door connecting them through the living rooms. It will look like two small separate apartments but will really be one large one." Beth raised her eyebrows at him well aware of his thoughts.

"Convenient," Sirius grunted with a wry smirk. He was pretty sure James never intended to be in a separate bedroom from Lily. Fortunately, that suited Sirius' optimal requirement to have Beth as close to him as possible.

Beth was eyeing him with a knowing smile. "We're not going to get much sleep this summer, are we?"

Sirius chuckled as he ran his thumb along her jaw. "Sleep is vastly overrated."

"We are going to have an amazing summer," she promised. Sirius smiled as his eyes flickered over her luminous eyes down to her lips, uplifted in a sunny smile. He kissed her tenderly.

"As long as you're with me, it will be." Sirius told her as he wrapped her in his arms again. Beth was right. There were no guarantees. He would relish every moment he had with her.

_**No, it's not quite over. There's a long epilogue coming plus a short extra chapter. Thank you for sticking with me! This is my longest story yet and Beth is my first original character. **_


	25. Epilogue

_**Twenty years later**_

Harry shrugged the heavy bag off his shoulder after he had apparated to the Weasley's yard. He started towards the Burrow, squinting at the bright sun as it glinted from the windows. He saw George, Ron, Ginny and a dark-haired teenager he didn't know swooping high on their brooms in the distance in what appeared to be a fierce Quidditch game. Ginny spotted him and came diving down, landing so quickly she had to run a few steps on the ground before she could stop the momentum.

"Harry!" she beamed as she reached him and kissed him. Harry smiled as always at her beautiful expressive face. "Someone is here to see you."

"Who is it?" Harry wasn't expecting anyone. The sun-kissed days of summer stretched long and inviting in front of him and he had strict orders to take it easy and enjoy these months doing as little as possible before beginning Auror training in the fall.

"I don't know," Ginny responded. "I didn't meet her, mum just told me to let you know as soon as you got back. She said she knew Sirius."

Harry grabbed Ginny's hand and quickened his step. Any friend of Sirius was a welcome visitor. He and Ginny hurried to the door, leaving Ginnny's broom propped up against the house. Harry quickly dropped his bag in the kitchen and they went into the living room where Mrs. Weasley and a woman with dark, curly hair sat. The woman was beautiful, probably somewhere in her early-thirties, a little shorter than average height, with a compact athletic build. She looked familiar to Harry though he could not place her. As he came near her, he saw her eyes widen with shock as she jumped to her feet and stared at him.

"Harry," Molly Weasley also stood up quickly. "This is Beth Peterson. She knew Sirius and your parents. She was an exchange student at Hogwarts during the second half of their seventh year."

Harry stepped closer to Beth, Ginny close behind him, and reached out his hand. "Nice to meet you, Ms. Peterson," he said politely. She looked young for her age, he decided, realizing she must be the same age as his parents and Sirius would have been.

"Please call me Beth," her voice was shaky. She had an American accent. She took a deep breath, placing her hand on her chest. "I'm sorry I'm staring." Her eyes remained riveted on his. "It's so strange seeing how much you look like your dad with bits of your mom mixed in."

Harry smiled. He pulled Ginny up next to him. "This is my girlfriend, Ginny Weasley." Beth smiled with eager friendliness at Ginny as she took her hand.

Molly spoke up as they sat down. "Beth said she has something important she wants to talk to you about, Harry." She turned to Beth politely. "Would you like privacy with Harry?"

Beth shook her head. "You're welcome to stay if you'd like." Her eyes became anxious as she looked at Harry. She stared at him without speaking, seeming to not know what to say.

Harry tried to ease her concern. "You knew my mum and dad?" He couldn't hide the excitement from his voice. "And Sirius?"

"Yes, very well. We were good friends at Hogwarts." She took a sip of water from a cup on the coffee table. "Harry, I don't know if you'll believe what I have to tell you. I don't have any evidence, just my gut feelings."

Harry frowned, perplexed. "Go on."

Beth looked pleading. She started speaking very fast, her words almost slurred in their rush to get out. "Sirius did not betray your parents. He could never have done that. He loved James and Lily, they were closer than family. He would have died for them rather than give them away. He was the most loyal, stubborn wi—"

"I know," Harry stopped her. He wanted to hear what else she had to say, but he could tell she was distraught and he wanted to stop her suffering.

Beth almost reared back in shock. "You know?"

Harry nodded. "I didn't know at first. When I was in my third year at Hogwarts, I overheard that it was Sirius who had betrayed my parents and was imprisoned in Azkaban. He escaped earlier that year when he found out Peter Pettigrew, the real traitor, was living as my mate's pet rat at Hogwarts. Peter had framed Sirius. Sirius was trying to kill Peter, watching out for me. Eventually, we met and the whole story came out."

"_Peter_ betrayed James and Lily?" Beth paled and put her fist to her mouth in shock. "He was living as a _rat_? How could he have-" she stopped, her eyes flashing. She swallowed and put her head down. Harry, Ginny and Molly were quiet, knowing she needed some time.

After a few minutes Beth took a deep breath. When she looked back up, her face was fierce but he saw there was also relief evident in her face that he knew the truth about Sirius. "So you learned the truth from Sirius? Did Sirius kill Peter?" Her voice had a hard edge for the last question.

"I wouldn't let Sirius and Remus kill him," Harry explained. "Peter got away."

Beth's eyes widened. "Remus was there?"

"He was my Defense of the Dark Arts professor that year," Harry explained.

"But he believed Sirius betrayed your parents," Beth cried.

Harry nodded. "That's right. But he saw Peter on the Marauder's Map and when Sirius and Remus flushed out Peter, he told the truth when they interrogated him." He looked at Beth sharply. "How did you know Remus believed Sirius was the traitor?"

"Maybe I should start at the beginning," Beth said. "Do you have some time?"

"Of course," Harry's eyes met Ginny's and she smiled at the eager light in his eyes.

"When I was a senior in high school, I came to Hogwarts for my second semester as an exchange student. Hogwarts had never allowed a Muggle as an ex—"

"You're a Muggle?" Harry interrupted in confusion.

"Yes," she smiled wryly. "I was only allowed because my uncle was the President of the Magic Department. It's the U. S. equivalent of the Ministry of Magic. Dumbledore was close to my uncle. He was returning a favor to my uncle by allowing me to come."

She bit her lip. "My uncle is a very powerful wizard, but he's muggle born. The last wizard we know of in our family is from five generations back."

"Why did you want to come to Hogwarts?" Ginny spoke up.

"I had lost my best friend several months before. I won't get into the whole story now, but she had committed suicide and I felt guilty that I hadn't done enough for her and I missed her. I needed to go somewhere away, somewhere totally different. I had graduated from high school early and I'd always been thrilled with the idea of being a witch. I don't know if you can imagine what it's like to be a muggle, knowing others can perform magic. I wanted to live with witches and wizards, to really learn what their lives were like. The wizarding schools in the U.S. aren't boarding schools. Hogwarts was the perfect place for me at that time. It felt like entering a fairy tale." Beth smiled and then a shadow passed over her face. "I never thought I'd fall in love with a wizard."

There was a deep silence in the room. Molly put her hand on Beth's arm. "Sirius." It was a statement, not a question. Harry's heart jumped in his throat.

"Yes," Beth looked at Harry again and smiled softly. "I'll tell you more about that later—how we fell in love despite knowing we were from two different worlds and did not think we could have a future together."

"So you and Sirius were together at Hogwarts," Harry asked quietly. "And you left at the end of the school year?"

"No," Beth said. "I stayed with Sirius for the summer after he finished at Hogwarts. It was a wonderful summer. The four of us lived together; James, Lily, Sirius and I. I didn't tell Sirius at first but I was hoping to stay with him forever. At the end of the summer, he made me go home. The war was becoming more dangerous and he was worried I would be hurt. I argued and pleaded with him. He finally persuaded me when he pointed out that because I was a muggle and couldn't protect myself, I made it more dangerous for him." She sighed. "He promised he would let me return when the war was over."

"Was that the last time you saw him?" Ginny was leaning towards Beth, riveted. Harry could see Ginny's eyes were wet although her expression was fierce.

"No," Beth said again. She smiled wistfully. "Sirius visited me back in the States as often as he could. He would apparate to my dorm room at my university when he was able for several hours, sometimes even for the weekend. It wasn't as wonderful as being together every day, but we made our time together count."

"But you lived thousands of miles away," Ginny looked puzzled. "We can't apparate that far."

Beth nodded. "Sirius was very clever. He figured out a way he could come to visit me when I went home before I left here at the end of the summer. It was really difficult. I looked up all of the flight routes of the airplanes crossing the Atlantic. We bought a special radio receiver that could pick up plane's transponder signals. I programmed the flight plans of all U.K. flights that went to North America into a computer."

"Weren't computers kind of large back then?" Harry broke in.

"Yes, very." Beth smiled reminiscently. "We used a combination of muggle technology and magic. Sirius shrunk the computer using a charms spell to make it small enough to carry. It could be a prototype for future muggle computers."

She continued at Harry's nod. "For each trip, Sirius looked the flight plans over, checked for flight changes before he left London and he went plane hopping, as he called it. He used the radio receiver to find out the geographic coordinates of the plane he needed to apparate to next. He usually apparated to flights going the northern route close to Iceland then kept moving ahead to flights successively closer to northern Canada. Once in Canada, he'd make his way across the continent until he reached the Pacific Northwest of the U.S. He eventually worked out the best route but it took a good amount of time to make it here. That is, for a wizard. It was much faster than muggles could travel."

Harry grinned. Apparating to a moving target was extremely complicated. It sounded like vintage Sirius to come up with a way to do that. "So he visited you here and you were safe," Harry said. "That seems like a reasonable compromise considering the times."

Beth squirmed a bit, looking guilty. "Yes, it was. But I wanted to be able to be with him more. In early January of 1981, I came back here. I told my family I was studying abroad. I was actually taking courses via correspondence. That was when your parents were moving from place to place keeping a low profile with you, Harry. I didn't tell Sirius, I just showed up. He was furious. He tried to make me go home but I told him I would just stay in England and I'd be safer if he kept me with him." She grimaced. "It was incredibly selfish on my part, but I was desperate. I don't regret it. I wanted to be with him so much. He let himself be persuaded against his better judgment. I promised him I would leave if it became more dangerous. " She stopped and looked down.

"What happened?" Harry couldn't resist asking as he met Ginny's wide eyes. Molly cleared her throat and reached for a tissue to dab at her eyes. They all knew things were heading south soon at this point in the story.

"We were together over nine months. I think I helped Sirius get through that tense time. He needed someone to comfort him. The war was heartbreaking…it was so awful. We were scared to death about James and Lily and you, Harry. Sirius was doing all he could with the Order of the Phoenix. He was suspicious of many of his old friends. He no longer trusted Remus. He wouldn't tell me why."

Beth bit her lip and then continued. "I stayed hidden at his place. No one knew I was here except Lily and James. Lily didn't even address me when she sent Sirius letters, to be safe. Sirius was worried that his family would find out about me and they would hurt me to get to him. He especially feared Bellatrix. He said she was crazy." Harry exchanged a tense look with Ginny and Molly. He wondered if Beth knew Bellatrix was the one who killed Sirius.

"Sirius wouldn't tell me any details of what was happening. He didn't even tell me what was going on with James and Lily and you. He said it would be better if I didn't know. He also admitted to me that it helped him to keep me and our relationship separate from his part in the wizarding war. He compartmentalized us so that he could get away from the stresses of battles and the debilitating anguish when friends died when he was with me. He told me it helped him stay stronger. It was strange how in the midst of all the angst and tension we lived in a bubble, treasuring every moment we had together." Beth's eyes filled with tears. This time Harry reached out and took her hand. She smiled at him gratefully.

There was a long pause as Beth collected herself. "There was a terrible battle towards the end of September where several members of the Order of the Phoenix were killed. Sirius insisted I leave. I had promised, and I knew my staying was making him more worried at this point. Worry over keeping me safe was distracting him and that could have hurt him. So I left. He assured again that he would let me know as soon as it was safe.

"When Sirius didn't come or contact me after late October, I knew something was terribly wrong. I had to go to my uncle and tell him that I had been with Sirius since the beginning of the year. He was as angry as Sirius had been. But at least he could tell me what was going on."

Beth threw a worried look at Harry and he squeezed her hand to reassure her. He knew she didn't want to bring up what happened next. "My uncle told me what happened to your parents, Harry. He also told me Sirius had betrayed them and had been sent to Azkaban. I was beside myself, grief-stricken over Lily and James as well as Sirius, locked away for a crime he didn't commit. I knew Sirius was innocent. I wrote to Remus, Dumbledore, McGonagall, everyone I knew to argue for Sirius. Only Remus and Dumbledore wrote me back. They both told me the evidence was overwhelming against Sirius and that it was not safe for me to come back. Remus thought Sirius gave in to Voldemort because of his pureblood family pressuring him. He didn't understand—James, Lily and you _were _Sirius' family. I didn't have any proof—only that I knew Sirius inside and out and he could never have done that. The pathetic irony is that the only two people who also would have believed in Sirius despite the evidence were James and Lily."

Harry blinked rapidly and cleared his throat. It made him feel better that someone had been fighting for Sirius, as futile as it had been.

"I would have come back then," Beth continued, her voice broken. "I would have tried to find evidence, do anything I could. Uncle John didn't tell me then that when Lily sacrificed herself for you, Harry, it almost finished off Voldemort. I didn't know that Voldemort lost his power and many of his Death-Eaters were sent to Azkaban. It was less dangerous at that time than I knew. It probably would have been useless anyway. I'm a muggle and powerless in the wizard world. My closest friends here—Lily, James and Marlene—had all been murdered and Remus was adamant in his belief that Sirius was guilty. But then I discovered I had someone else to protect. I found I was pregnant."

Harry gasped. Molly and Ginny did not look surprised, but Harry didn't spare the time to follow up on that. "You had a baby? Sirius' baby?" he choked out.

Beth's sudden smile was filled with loving warmth. "Yes, I had Sirius' son the following May. He's close to two years younger than you, Harry."

Harry grappled for a few minutes with the wishful thinking of how happy Sirius would have been if he had known. Harry remembered how depressed and careless Sirius had been the last year of his life. Would he have behaved differently if he'd known Beth was waiting for him and he had a son?

"I kept writing several times each year to Remus and Dumbledore. I continually defended Sirius, and I wanted to make sure he was still alive. I also asked about you each time, Harry. After several years, Remus and I lost touch. He must have moved a few times. Dumbledore continued to write me back but he would only say that Sirius was alive and that you were well." She looked at Harry sadly. "I knew Sirius would want me to keep our son safe, so I stayed away. My uncle had also promised to let me know as soon as it was over. Dumbledore told my uncle that Voldemort was not defeated yet and he was sure he would return. So I waited."

She looked at them with a dejected expression. "Uncle John told me when Sirius died two years ago. He didn't give me any details how it happened. But I already knew. He just confirmed it." She answered the question on Harry's face. "Sirius used a spell to attach strings to the last note he wrote to me before I left." She ducked her head and a painful grimace twisted her lips. She looked down at her right wrist. Harry saw she had a bracelet made of strings woven around her wrist. "The strings were an inside joke between us. I always kept the note in my top bedside table drawer. One day when I pulled it out to look at it, the note was alone. There were no strings attached. They had fallen off." She stared at Harry unseeingly. "I just knew that meant he had passed.

"I was devastated. I could barely function. If not for my son-" She stopped and wiped her eyes with her hands until Molly Weasley summoned up another box of tissues and passed it to Beth. They waited several minutes in compassionate silence until Beth was able to look back up at them composed again, with mostly dry eyes.

"So that was it?" Ginny asked almost in disbelief. "Didn't Sirius ever try to contact you after he escaped?"

"Not me, but my uncle." Beth nodded at Ginny. "After Sirius escaped from Azkaban, he contacted Uncle John. He wanted to know if I was alright. Uncle John told him that I was settled with a family. He didn't tell him my family was Sirius' son." She paused, looking shaky. "I know my uncle was just trying to protect me, but I'm still struggling to forgive him for purposefully misleading Sirius and not telling me that Sirius was free. Uncle John was afraid I'd go to Sirius if I knew he was out of Azkaban. He made Sirius promise not to contact me until Voldemort and his Death Eaters were completely gone and it was safe. It's pretty obvious Sirius would not have wanted me to come yet either. I just wish he could have found out he had a son."

She wiped her eyes once again with the tissue and doggedly continued. "After Voldemort was killed last month, Uncle John confessed to me that Sirius had been in contact with him every month until he died. That's how Uncle John first realized something must have happened to Sirius. He hadn't heard from him at his regular interval. My uncle contacted Dumbledore and found out that Sirius was gone."

Beth's voice was bitter. "I've been ignorant of so much of what was going on. My uncle didn't tell me when Sirius escaped from Azkaban, all of the times Sirius contacted him or anything about how he died. Remus refused to tell me anything in his letters except that there was too much evidence against Sirius to believe in his innocence. Dumbledore would only say Sirius was alive and that you, Harry, were safe. And Sirius hid almost everything about the wizard war when we were together. Everyone trying to protect me has made it so frustrating." Her hands methodically ripped a tissue into small pieces.

Harry took a deep breath and leaned back. Beth's words swirled through his head but he didn't have time to think it all through. "Where's your son?" he asked.

Beth turned to look at him, a light dawning in her eyes at the mention of her son. "Why, he's right outside playing Quidditch."

Harry jerked further upright. The dark-haired boy on the broom was Sirius' son? "He's a wizard?"

"Yes," Beth smiled at him. "A very clever wizard just like his dad."

Molly Weasley stood up. "I'll just go call him to come in and meet Harry."

Beth nodded. "He's very anxious to meet you, Harry. I've been telling him stories about his dad, James and Lily for years."

In less than a minute, there were sounds of running footsteps and then George, Ron and the dark-haired boy came bursting into the living room. The boy hurried across the room to his mother, his face eager with anticipation. He didn't look as uncannily like Sirius as Harry did to James, but the resemblance was strong and he had Sirius' eyes. "Harry," Beth smiled at Harry and then turned back to her son, pride obvious in her face. "This is my son, Sirius."

Sirius looked thrilled as he shook Harry's hand. "I'm really happy to meet you, Harry." Sirius said. His voice was so familiar that Harry started in shock.

"You sound just like your dad," Harry said, "with an American accent."

Sirius grinned. He had his dad's charming smile that lit up his face. "So my mom says."

"Would you mind telling us how you defeated Voldemort, Harry?" Beth asked her voice slightly shaky. "I've read a bit since we arrived here and my uncle explained parts, but the accounts are a little sketchy. We'd love to hear the entire story from you."

Sirius looked at Harry eagerly and Harry nodded. For the next few hours, Harry told them the entire story, aided by Ron, Ginny and George who eagerly jumped in when Harry didn't provide enough details. Beth and Sirius listened avidly, especially the parts when Sirius came into the story. Harry faltered and looked at Beth and her son guiltily when he reached his part in initiating the battle that led to Sirius' death. Beth gave him a sad smile. "You were doing the best you could with the information you had, Harry." Harry felt relief at her understanding and he was able to continue. Beth grabbed her son's hand when Harry described the end of the battle that resulted in Sirius' demise. "His own cousin killed him," she said darkly. "And then she taunted you about it. He wasn't at all exaggerating when he told me how sadistic and demented Bellatrix was."

"She was a sodding lunatic," Ron looked as bitter as Ron was capable of. Harry knew Ron still had nightmares about Bellatrix torturing Hermione while they were helplessly locked downstairs hearing her scream.

Harry resolutely continued, reaching the final hours at Hogwarts in his long narrative. Beth nodded at the part where Harry learned that Snape loved his mother. "James suspected that," she said softly. "Maybe that's why they hated each other so much."

She shot a fierce, appreciative look at Molly Weasley when Ginny told them about her mother finishing off Bellatrix. If their future friendship hadn't already been sealed, Harry knew it was at that point when Molly gave Beth a grim smile in return.

Beth teared up again when he told her about Remus and his wife, Tonks, dying together. "Oh, and they had a son," she said sadly, wiping her eyes.

"Tonks was related to Sirius. So their son Teddy is related to you," he looked at Sirius. Beth and Sirius looked a bit bemused. Harry guessed they hadn't thought about Sirius having any relatives they wanted to claim. Sirius' immediate family members were all deceased and Beth would not want to have anything to do with the Malfoys.

When he finished the account with Voldemort's death, there was a short silence. Harry's mouth was dry from talking so much. "Oh Harry," Beth's smile was bright though her eyes were still full of tears. "You went through so much. Your parents would be proud." She reached out and took his hand. "You got the best parts of Lily and James."

Beth sighed and leaned back, her face relaxing for the first time since Harry had met her. Sirius had a huge grin on his face and he looked at Harry with an awed respect. Molly broke the silence by asking if anyone would like tea.

Ron and Ginny got up to help their mother after Beth's help was firmly turned down by Molly Weasley. "We'd really like you both to stay for dinner and the night also," Molly told Beth. "We have plenty of room here and we'd love to get to know you both better."

Sirius gave his mother an openly enthusiastic look and she accepted gratefully.

"How long are you going to be in England, Beth?" Ginny asked later as the group devoured Molly Weasley's excellent biscuits and tea.

"I'm not sure," Beth said with a small smile towards her son. "At least two years. Sirius wants to go to Hogwarts and learn more about where his dad came from. I've contacted Headmistress McGonagall and she said there was a space available for a sixth year."

"That's great!" Ginny leaned forward. "I have one more year at Hogwarts, and Hermione is coming back to finish her seventh year with me. I'm sure you'll be sorted into Gryffindor with us, Sirius."

"I'll be starting Auror training this fall, but I'll be visiting Ginny every weekend." Harry smiled at Sirius. He looked forward to getting to know Sirius' son. "McGonagall has given me special visitor privileges."

"One of the many benefits of defeating Voldemort," Ron drawled with a smirk at Harry. "If you ever need help with any of your classes, Sirius, ask my girlfriend Hermione. She's brilliant."

"Or you can ask me," George deadpanned. "I was well known at Hogwarts for my academic abilities."

"Or lack of," Ron coughed into his hand. George slapped upside the back of Ron's head.

"Amazing how good the one-eared git's hearing is," Ron groused, glaring at his brother. Harry noticed Sirius was grinning, amused at the rapid-fire conversation of the Weasley siblings.

"You can try out for the Quidditch team! I'm the captain," Ginny got that competitive fire in her eyes that Harry well knew. "You have excellent flying skills. Did you play on your school team?"

Sirius nodded and they were soon deep in discussion about Quidditch. Beth watched her son chatter, her lips curved up. Harry frowned, deep in thought. He jumped up suddenly, startling Beth who looked at him anxiously.

"Beth, I think I have something you may want to see," he told her urgently. He ran upstairs to the room he was sharing with Ron. Harry opened the closet and dug through the boxes carelessly stacked there. He finally found the small items that had previously puzzled him and grabbed them as he headed back downstairs.

"I found these with Sirius' stuff," Harry told Beth as he came back in the living room. "He couldn't have had them at Azkaban but he must have put them somewhere safe where he was able to get them when he came back." He handed Beth a white paper sleeve that encased two 45 records. Beth pulled them out and her eyes widened in shock when she saw the records were 'Beth' and 'Brown-eyed Girl'. A small, well-worn photo and piece of parchment were between the records. Beth picked up the photo and looked at it. It was a black and white photo of her. On the back was scrawled "1978". The parchment was a note which she read, tears filling up her eyes. "Sirius—I promise I'll never stop. Keep safe. Beth."

Sirius moved back to sit next to his mom and looked at the note. "You'll never stop, what, mom?"

"Loving him," Beth sniffed. "I told him I would never stop loving him." She broke down and buried her head in her son's arms.

Harry and the Weasleys exchanged looks and quietly left the living room. Harry put his arm around Ginny. "Sirius mostly had a shite life, but I'm glad he at least had some time with her."

Dinner was festive. Arthur Weasley had returned and caught up on Beth's story. He happily quizzed Beth about muggle technology and was agog at the new technologies in computers she described.

"What will you be doing when Sirius goes to Hogwarts?" Molly asked Beth.

"I'll be teaching computer science at Oxford," Beth replied. At the stunned looks around the table, Sirius smiled. "Mom's an expert in computer science. She can pretty much get a job teaching anywhere."

"Speaking of computers," Beth looked across the table at Harry, "I brought my laptop. I have some videos from Hogwarts if you'd like to see them."

"You took a video camera to Hogwarts?" Harry couldn't stop grinning.

"What does video mean?" Ron asked.

"Yes," Beth replied to Harry. "I used it to show muggle technology when I taught Muggle Studies."

"But there's no electricity at Hogwarts," Harry said.

"Yeah, that was the tough part." Beth nodded. "My uncle made me special batteries that could hold more than hundreds of times the charge of regular batteries at that time. He fixed it so that all of my equipment could plug into the batteries. Even with that, I had to be careful how much I used my equipment so I wouldn't run out of power."

"What other equipment did you bring to Hogwarts?" Arthur Weasley's eyes gleamed with interest.

"My 35mm camera, a tri-pod, a cassette tape recorder, a video player and T.V. to show my films." Beth grinned.

"You brought a telly there?" Arthur's mouth was open wide. "They were pretty bulky."

"It was a small T.V. with just a 12-inch screen," Beth shrugged. "They loved watching the videos I recorded in my Muggle Studies classes."

"What's a video?" Ron repeated.

"We never had a Muggle Studies class like _that_," George muttered enviously.

They moved back to the living room. Beth pulled out her laptop and opened it. "I shot these on video tape and converted them to digital recently." The Weasleys looked at her blankly. Harry quickly explained, "Muggles keep changing the way they record and store pictures and films." Ron sighed exasperated.

"The first video is a fast-motion recording of James, Sirius and I making Lily's birthday cake. I persuaded them to make it the muggle way, but being Sirius and James, they just had to incorporate some magic."

They piled around Beth who sat in the middle of the couch, several Weasleys standing behind the couch crouched to see the laptop screen. Sirius, James and Beth's bodies moved in jerky motions due to the timed shots. "Wow," Ginny breathed. "Look at your dad, Harry."

Harry nodded and grinned. He looked at Sirius who must have seen this film many times before, but still had the same hungry look in his eyes when he watched his father as Harry did.

"Were you and Sirius dating when this was filmed?" Ginny asked.

"No," Beth replied. "Lily's birthday was in January. This was just a few weeks after I came to Hogwarts."

"Not at all subtle," Harry whispered to Ginny the fifth time they saw Sirius run into Beth and grab her to steady her.

The group was soon laughing. After watching the cake batter poured over the heads of the three occupants and the ensuing battle, Harry told Beth, "You looked like the Three Stooges."

Beth gave him a strange look. "That's exactly what your mom said when she saw it."

"I won't even bother to ask what the three stooges are," Ron muttered querulously.

"Quit being such a whiner," George snorted.

Beth shot Ron a sympathetic smile. "Sorry Ron. I got sidetracked when you asked questions before. They're actors who did slapstick comedies in the '30's."

Ron nodded, mollified. The end of the video was of Lily and James, no longer in fast motion. Lily was eating a huge piece of her birthday cake and feeding James every other bite. James happily mugged for the camera and Lily reached over and messed up his hair in a perfect imitation of the way James had when Harry had first seen him at age fifteen in Snape's memory. Lily and James laughed together and then James kissed Lily, his hand smoothing back her hair tenderly. The camera panned to Sirius, who rolled his eyes at his best mate and then winked, his eyes lit up, at whoever was filming. By his expression, it was obvious that Beth was the photographer. Watching them, Harry couldn't help but smile.

"I have some really good videos of Lily also as well as more of James and Sirius," Beth told Harry. "I've made a DVD for you of all the videos I shot at Hogwarts."

Harry exchanged an excited look with Ginny. He could hardly wait to ask Beth to loan him her computer to watch the DVD while visiting the Weasleys.

Beth twisted and reached inside her handbag. "I also brought you a set of prints of all the photos I took with your parents and Sirius in them." She pulled out a fat envelope and handed it to Harry. Harry looked through the photos of his young happy parents and Sirius, his smile wide. There was one of Sirius swinging Beth around in his arms, both laughing. "These are brilliant, Beth," he was finally able to say when he finished. His eyes were wet when he met hers. "I can't tell you how much this means to me."

Something struck Harry and he took Beth aside a few minutes later. "Does your son have your last name?" Harry asked Beth. "He doesn't have Black as his surname, does he?"

"No," Beth said ruefully. "Many American wizards knew the story of Sirius' alleged betrayal. I didn't want my son to be subjected to anyone telling him lies about his dad when he went to wizarding school." She looked at Harry with sad eyes. "I also didn't want there to be any chance that Sirius might hear he had a son when he was in Azkaban. Remus told me how the dementors worked on prisoners. If Sirius had found out about his son when he was imprisoned, it would have caused him more agony there. Except for my uncle, I didn't let anyone in the wizarding world know, even Remus, that Sirius had a son."

"That explains why Remus didn't tell Sirius about his son after they reconciled once Sirius was out of Azkaban," Harry said thoughtfully.

"I'm so glad they were friends again those last few years," Beth said. She knew it was a good thing Harry had dropped the Resurrection Stone. She would not have been able to resist the temptation to bring Sirius back, again and again.

"Now that Sirius' name is cleared," Harry spoke eagerly, "have you thought of changing his name?" Her eyes shot to his surprised at his urgent manner. "Not that your surname is not perfectly fine," he hastened to add. "But there are no other Black family survivors. Your son is the last of the Black family line."

"Actually, Sirius and I talked about that recently," Beth admitted. "He would like to have his dad's surname in addition to mine. We recently filed to change his name to Sirius Peterson Black."

"How long does that take to become legal?" Harry asked quickly.

"A couple of months," Beth said. She gave Harry a curious look, but Harry didn't want to explain just yet.

"Brilliant," Harry only said relieved. Dumbledore had explained to Harry that he was only able to inherit Sirius' belongings and wealth because there were no children with the Black name. Harry had always felt guilty about that. Once Sirius' son's surname was Black, it would all revert to him. Kreacher would be ecstatic to serve a Black, the nephew of Regulus. He decided not to tell Beth until the deed was done, knowing she might protest.

Eventually even Sirius started yawning as the group laughed and talked for hours. Beth came to Harry to say good-night after profusely thanking Molly Weasley again.

"I'm so glad," she smiled at Harry. "I'm so glad Sirius, Lily, James and Remus along with so many others, didn't die in vain." Harry hugged her wordlessly. She was another link to his parents and his godfather and he looked forward to hearing more about them.

Ginny and Harry walked slowly up to Ginny's room, hand in hand after Beth and Sirius had retired for the night. "I'm a bit surprised Sirius didn't go and see her, despite his promise to Beth's uncle," Ginny admitted as they reached her door and went in. "He never liked to play by the rules."

Harry carefully closed the door behind them. "I'm pretty sure he did see her." Ginny looked at him surprised. "You remember he was hiding out for a long time after he escaped from Azkaban. After he made sure I was safe from Peter and escaped on Buckbeak, he left the country."

Ginny went and sat on her bed and Harry followed her. "He mentioned to me, months later, that he'd gone to the States first. I was worried, there are wizards there who might have recognized him. He reassured me he was canine the entire time."

"Did he tell you what he did there?" Ginny asked. She was squeezing Harry's hand hard unconsciously and he grinned at her.

"Not exactly," Harry said. "He told me he had to see someone special to him, to make sure she was alright. He said he saw her and she was very well taken care of. I'm sure it was Beth. His voice sounded almost choked when he told me." Harry paused, thinking. "I skipped a lot of details when I told Beth and Sirius all that happened the last several years. I didn't mention Sirius could transform to a dog, did I?"

Ginny shook her head, frowning. "No, come to think of it, you didn't. You mentioned Peter being a rat, but I don't think you mentioned Sirius or your dad being animagi."

Harry was quiet, thinking. Beth would love to hear how Sirius escaped from Azkaban. He'd have to go into more depth tomorrow.

"Why didn't you tell Beth that Sirius checked on her?" Ginny's eyes searched Harry's. "She's had so many people lie to her to protect her."

"I don't know," Harry paused. "What if it just hurts her more? That he was right there and she didn't even know it? Will it just remind her that if her uncle had told Sirius Beth was not married and was waiting for him, Sirius would have contacted her?"

"Harry," Ginny argued. "Beth's uncle trying to protect her may have cost Sirius and Beth the chance to have more time together. You shouldn't hide things to protect her also. You need to respect her right to know the truth. She's strong. She can handle it."

Harry frowned, thinking. "Alright," he nodded. "I'll tell her tomorrow."

Ginny smiled and nestled in his arms. "They feel closer tonight to us, don't they?" Her eyes were understanding and bright as always when they talked about Harry's parents and godfather.

"Yeah," Harry tightened his hold on her. "They really do."


	26. Extra scene

_**Four years earlier**_

Beth took a deep breath once outside. Her brother was visiting and had practically shoved her out of the house, insisting she go outside for an hour while he made her dinner. Her son was spending the night at a friend's house and she felt relaxed with the prospect of a long weekend ahead of her. It was a beautiful evening in early summer. The air smelled of freshly mown grass, the sun was warm as it descended towards the horizon and the shouts of children playing baseball in the cul de sac battled with a stereo blasting from a nearby backyard. She wandered into the patch of lawn framed by her prized rhododendrons and azaleas, heavy with blossoms. She was startled when she turned and saw a large dark dog sitting on the grass, his eyes watchful.

"Oh," she jumped slightly and put her hand on her chest. "You startled me," she scolded the dog. "Are you lost?" She kept her distance. She'd never seen this dog before and he was huge.

The dog didn't stand up, but his mouth lolled open and he eyed her with friendly eyes. Beth walked closer, emboldened by his air and bright, happy gaze. She tentatively reached out to pet him and the dog enthusiastically licked her hand.

"You're just the sweetest thing," Beth gushed, scratching his head and bending closer. "Do you belong to someone?" Her hands moved to his neck, searching for a collar. There was no collar there and she frowned as she inspected him.

"Hmm," she mused. "You're a little skinny and shaggy but seem mostly healthy." The dog stood up, his tail waving. He gave a short bark when her hands fell away from him and she laughed and started petting him again.

"I want to keep you," she told him as her fingers worked their way down his back, stroking. "My son would love you."

She could swear the dog understood her. He looked as if he was smiling, as much as a dog could smile that is. She looked in his eyes which continued to regard her with an almost human-like expression. "You look familiar," she told him. "But I don't think I've seen you before."

She walked over to a bench on the edge of the lawn and the dog followed. Beth sat down and the dog put his head in her lap and gave her the patented lovable-beseeching-dog-eyes look. Beth stroked his head and back, relaxing in the fragrant air. A deep contentment filled her as she felt the dog affectionately lean his weight against her legs. For the next hour, she allowed herself to live in the moment and not think about anything but the warmth of the dog's fur under her hands.

"Beth!" Her brother's deep voice boomed from the house. The dog stiffened and lifted his head, his ears up as he listened. "Dinner's almost ready."

Beth reluctantly dropped her hands from the dog and stood up. "Do you want some food?" she asked the dog. The dog just looked at her. "Let's go get you something to eat." Beth walked across the lawn and towards her front door. She looked back to call the dog to follow her and was shocked when she saw he had disappeared. She looked around confused. She hadn't heard the dog pushing his way through the bushes and she couldn't see him in the open area. She walked to her driveway and looked down the street both directions. There was no sign of the dog. Beth wandered her yard searching for a few minutes, but he was gone. She was surprised how disappointed she felt. With one last concerned look, she turned and went into her house.

_**Notes (some back story that I could not work into the fic):**_

_**-I was trying to stick to HP canon, at least on the main points, with this story. It was important that Sirius never knew he had a son and that Beth was waiting for him. In the HP series, Sirius' allegiance is to Harry. For it to remain that way, he had to think Beth had her own family and was better left alone in her safe muggle world.**_

_**-I kept Bellatrix from ever learning about Beth because I thought her character would do exactly what Sirius feared. Beth would have been an easy target for Bellatrix and she would have been incensed her pureblood cousin was with a muggle. I wanted Sirius and Beth to have as much time together as possible, and for that to happen, Bellatrix could not find out.**_

_**- Lily would never work on anything that would be used for harmful purposes for her potion project, but she did not think about the Sanare potion's potential to do just that as Snape did. Snape was the one who immediately saw how it could be used to help Voldemort's cause; Wilkes was not that smart. Wilkes and Rosier were working under Snape's instructions. However, Snape insisted Lily could not be hurt. Once Lily had successfully figured out how to make it, the directions on how to create the Sanare Potion had to be destroyed or it could have been used to help wizards such as the Longbottoms in HP. **_

_**-I made up the "plane hopping" Sirius came up with to be able to make his way to visit Beth. It seemed like something Sirius would do. **_

_**-Sirius never questioned that Beth's uncle might be misleading him about her marital status to try and protect Beth by keeping her from rejoining him. When he visited Beth as Snuffles, Beth mentioned her son and Sirius assumed her brother's voice was her husband's. Sirius' son was not there when Sirius visited or Sirius would have recognized him as his son.**_

_**-Beth lost contact with Remus before he learned the truth about Sirius (in PoA). If she had still been communicating with Remus after he reconciled with Sirius, he would have told her Sirius was out of Azkaban. He did try to write her after the end of PoA, but Beth had also moved a couple of years earlier from the last address he had. His letter was not forwarded. **_

_**-Dumbledore had a history of not telling information he did not think needed to be known (he kept a lot of information from Harry throughout the series). He knew Beth would come back to the U.K. if she learned Sirius was out of Azkaban, and he chose not to tell her, partially out of deference to his friend, her uncle John and partially for her safety. He also continued to warn her that it was not safe for her to return. Beth's uncle did not tell Dumbledore that Sirius and Beth had a son.**_

_**-Remus told Sirius once they were working together again in the Order of the Phoenix (Harry's fifth year at Hogwarts) that Beth wrote him and others for years trying to persuade them of Sirius' innocence and that he dissuaded her from coming back. Sirius was touched but not surprised; he knew Beth would be sure he would never have betrayed James and Lily. He did not think it strange Beth continued to write even after supposedly having her own family knowing that Beth was intensely loyal. He did not expect her loyalty to extend to waiting over 12 years while he was in Azkaban, especially as he had a life sentence and she would not have expected him to ever get out.**_

_**-Although Sirius did not attempt to see Beth again after his visit as Snuffles, he planned to visit her once Voldemort was defeated. He would have persuaded himself it was okay to make a friendly visit once Harry was safe and at that time would have found out about his son and that Beth was waiting for him.**_

_**-Beth doesn't know it yet (at the end of this story) but McGonagall guessed who Sirius' father was when she received Beth's inquiry about her son attending Hogwarts (his name was a good clue and McGonagall remembered Beth and Sirius Black's relationship when they were at Hogwarts together). McGonagall's guess was confirmed when she obtained Sirius' transcripts which included a photo. McGonagall made room for Sirius at Hogwarts in homage to his father. Beth will find this out when Harry and Ginny take her and her son for a tour of Hogwarts before the new term begins. **_


End file.
